Abstract

KIE: Using specific examples such as the recombinant DNA debate, the author compares Soviet and American decision-making procedures in resolving bioethical controversies. In the Soviet Union, the dominant approach is for specialists to arrive at the "correct" position inherent in the world view of Marxism-Leninism. In the United States, it is common to negotiate a compromise between what science can achieve and what defenders of old values are willing to accept. The author concludes that, in both countries, resolution of biomedical issues is influenced more by culture and tradition than by logic and reason.