Towards a Professional Model of Surrogate Motherhood - Hardcover

Walker, Ruth; Van Zyl, Liezl

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1137586575 ISBN 13: 9781137586575

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan, 2017

Synopsis

This book delves deeply into modern surrogacy arrangements, responding to both practical and ethical critiques by offering a radically new model for surrogate motherhood. Current practice distinguishes between two models of surrogacy – the altruistic (unpaid) model and the commercial (paid) model, both of which present social, ethical, and conceptual challenges. This book proposes a novel arrangement for surrogate motherhood – the professional model. Inspired by professions, such as nursing, teaching, and social work, the professional model acknowledges the caring motives that surrogate mothers have while at the same time compensating them for their work. Walker and Van Zyl adopt an evidence-based approach to explain that the professional model enables trust between intended parents and surrogates, provides professional support at every stage of the relationship, affords legal protections against exploitation and commodification, and recognizes the rights and interests of all parties, including the intended baby. The model applies to both transnational and domestic surrogacy and will be of great interest to policy makers, social researchers, bioethicists, legal scholars, fertility professionals, clinicians, and graduate students in psychology, philosophy, medicine and ethics.

About this title

About the Author

Dr Ruth Walker is a Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand. Her research areas are in bioethics and social science research ethics.

Dr Liezl van Zyl is a Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand. Her research areas are virtue ethics and bioethics.

From the Back Cover

This book delves deeply into modern surrogacy arrangements, responding to both practical and ethical critiques by offering a radically new model for surrogate motherhood. Current practice distinguishes between two models of surrogacy – the altruistic (unpaid) model and the commercial (paid) model, both of which present social, ethical, and conceptual challenges. This book proposes a novel arrangement for surrogate motherhood – the professional model. Inspired by professions, such as nursing, teaching, and social work, the professional model acknowledges the caring motives that surrogate mothers have while at the same time compensating them for their work. Walker and Van Zyl adopt an evidence-based approach to explain that the professional model enables trust between intended parents and surrogates, provides professional support at every stage of the relationship, affords legal protections against exploitation and commodification, and recognizes the rights and interests of all parties, including the intended baby. The model applies to both transnational and domestic surrogacy and will be of great interest to policy makers, social researchers, bioethicists, legal scholars, fertility professionals, clinicians, and graduate students in psychology, philosophy, medicine and ethics.

Edition details

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Publication date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1137586575
• ISBN 13: 9781137586575
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 211