| When concretized emotion-belief complexes derail decision-making capacity. | |
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MedLine Citation:
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PMID: 20497171 Owner: NLM Status: In-Data-Review |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
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There is an important gap in philosophical, clinical and bioethical conceptions of decision-making capacity. These fields recognize that when traumatic life circumstances occur, people not only feel afraid and demoralized, but may develop catastrophic thinking and other beliefs that can lead to poor judgment. Yet there has been no articulation of the ways in which such beliefs may actually derail decision-making capacity. In particular, certain emotionally grounded beliefs are systematically unresponsive to evidence, and this can block the ability to deliberate about alternatives. People who meet medico-legal criteria for decision-making capacity can react to health and personal crises with such capacity-derailing reactions. One aspect of this is that a person who is otherwise cognitively intact may be unable to appreciate her own future quality of life while in this complex state of mind. This raises troubling ethical challenges. We cannot rely on the current standard assessment of cognition to determine decisional rights in medical and other settings. We need to understand better how emotionally grounded beliefs interfere with decision-making capacity, in order to identify when caregivers have an obligation to intervene. |
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Authors:
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Jodi Halpern |
Publication Detail:
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Type: Journal Article Date: 2010-05-17 |
Journal Detail:
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Title: Bioethics Volume: 26 ISSN: 1467-8519 ISO Abbreviation: Bioethics Publication Date: 2012 Feb |
Date Detail:
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Created Date: 2012-01-19 Completed Date: - Revised Date: - |
Medline Journal Info:
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Nlm Unique ID: 8704792 Medline TA: Bioethics Country: England |
Other Details:
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Languages: eng Pagination: 108-16 Citation Subset: E; IM |
Copyright Information:
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© 2010 Blackwell Publishing Ltd. |
Affiliation:
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University of California, Berkeley. |
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