ABSTRACT
Research that may be readily used for good or bad purposes, also known as dual use research (DUR), raises controversial ethical, social, and political issues concerning the funding, conduct, dissemination, and application of science. Although questions about the dual nature of research have arisen throughout the history of science, they entered the public spotlight during the recent controversies concerning the National Institutes of Health (NIH)'s funding of gain-of-function (GOF) experiments involving dangerous viruses. This chapter will define DUR, review the history and regulatory oversight of DUR in biotechnology and biomedicine, and discuss how social values enter into decisions concerning DUR governance and oversight.
Readers may be interested in these Handbook chapters as well: Heather Douglas, “Science and Social Justice”; Kristina Rolin, “Values in Research Ethics Education”; Jamie Shaw, “The Values of Science Funding Institutions.”
