Professor Susan Dodds

Ba (Tor), PhD (La Trobe)

Susan Dodds is Professor of Philosophy and Head of the School of English Literatures, Philosophy and Languages. Her teaching is primarily in the areas of applied ethics, political philosophy, philosophy of feminism and philosophy of law.

Susan's research interests address issues in political and social philosophy, ethics and applied ethics. Her current work explores three overlapping themes: democratic deliberation, justification and representation; vulnerability selfhood and ethical responsibility; and the implications of technological change for civil life and policy.

Susan is Chief Investigator on an ARC Discovery Grant (2005-2009) "Big-Picture Bioethics: policy-making in liberal democracy". Big-Picture Bioethics is an ethical and political analysis of the making of health policy in ethically contentious domains. Its central question is whether contemporary liberal political theory is able to realize the ideals of democratic and legitimate policy making in multi-cultural states.

She is also Chief Investigator and leader of the Ethics Project for the ARC of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES). ACES is a multi-institutional, cross-disciplinary ARC funded Centre of Excellence. The Ethics Project is a research program on the ethical implications of novel electromaterials including new energy conversion/storage devices (e.g. wearables) and bionics. Of particular interest is the impact of research into nanostructured electromaterials for use in/on human bodies to alleviate disease and enhance human capacities and the social forces shaping these developments. The research will address the ways in which the introduction of nanotechnologies may challenge existing social understandings of what it is to be a human, how health is to be achieved, and how we should respond to the enhancements to biological functioning that can be achieved through the introduction of new materials onto/into bodies.

Susan is the President (2007-2008) of the Australasian Association of Philosophy and the Vice President of the International Association of Bioethics. She is a founding member of the International Network on Feminist Approaches to Bioethics (FAB) and served as its Co-ordinator for two terms (2002-2006).

Susan is the Coordinator of the Citizens, States and Power Faculty Research Priority Area.

Honours and Post-graduate Supervision:

Honours Supervision

Current:

• Yuventius Nurman: Labour migration and justice in the global order.

Recent completions:

• 2007, Ash Pemberton: Buckminster Fuller and the ethical principals for designers (joint Philosophy/ Communications hon).
• 2006, Brys Tanner: Citizens' virtues for deliberative democracy (joint Politics/ Philosophy hons)
• 2005, Jane Lymer: Citizenship, gender and women who breastfeed in public.

Current Post-graduate supervision:

• Nina Berry: The ethics of advertising breast milk substitutes (Associate Supervision with A/Prof Sandra Jones and Prof Don Iverson).
• Kylie Bourne: Ethical responsibility for 'unruly groups'. (Co-supervision with Dr David Neil).
• Jane Lymer: Embodiment and Emotion (Co-supervision with Dr Kim Atkins).
• Rachel Molloy: Embodied citizenship and communitarian politics (Co-supervision with Dr David Neil)
• Kerry Ross: Edible Politics: Democracy and Genetically Modified Foods (Co-supervision with A/Prof David Mercer)
• Colin Salter: Indigenous Self-determination and protection of sacred sites: a case study of Sandon Point development (Co-supervision with Brian Martin).

Recent Completions:

• Renee Kyle, PhD 2006: Harming and Healing: Young Women and the Development of the Autonomous Self
• Angela Pratt, PhD 2003: Indigenous Sovereignty -Never Ceded: Sovereignty, Nationhood and Whiteness in Australia.

Selected publications 1996-2006:

Searchable RIS publications from 2000 to date

Book (edited collection)

• Rosemarie Tong, Anne Donchin, Susan Dodds (eds.), 2004. Linking Visions Feminist Bioethics, Human Rights and the Developing World Rowman and Littlefield. ISBN 074253278X (hardcover) 0742532798 (paper).

• National Health and Medical Research Council, 2002. Human Research Ethics Handbook: Commentary on the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Research Involving Humans. Paul Komesaroff, Susan Dodds Paul McNeill, Loane Skene (editorial committee); Colin Thomson (executive editor). Canberra : Commonwealth of Australia, ISBN 1864960701 (print) 1864960760 (online) pgs. 360, plus appendices. http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/publications/hrecbook/misc/contents.htm

Guest Edited Journal Special Issue

• Bioethics, Special issue on feminist perspectives in bioethics. Vol 21 issue 9 November 2007. Guest Editors: Anne Donchin, Susan Dodds, Jing-Bao Nie.

Refereed Journal Articles

• Susan Dodds (forthcoming). Inclusion and Exclusion in Women's Access to Health and Medicine. International Journal of Feminist Approaches to Bioethics vol 1, number 2.
  
• Susan Dodds and Colin Thomson, 2006. Bioethics and Democracy:
  Competing Roles of National Bioethics Organisations. Bioethics, vol 20 number 6; 326-338.
  
• Susan Dodds and Rachel A. Ankeny, 2006. 'Regulation of hESC Research in Australia: Promises and Pitfalls for Deliberative Democratic Approaches' Journal of Bioethical Inquiry vol. 3 nummber 1-2; 95-107.
  
• Jocelyn Downie, Patricia Baird, Jon Thompson, & Susan Dodds 2005, 'The Olivieri Case: Lessons for Australasia' Journal of Bioethical Inquiry vol 2 no 2 90-105.
  
• Susan Dodds 2005. 'Gender, Ageing and Injustice: social and political contexts of bioethics' Journal of Medical Ethics vol 31 no 5; 295-298.
  
• Susan Dodds, 2002. 'Is the Australian HREC system sustainable?' Monash Bioethics Review vol. 21, no. 3 (July), Ethics Committee Supplement pp. 43- 48. 'Is the Australian HREC system sustainable?' was the lead paper in a discussion which included:
• • Don Chalmers, 'The expectation gap, risk management and the Australian HREC system
  • ' Kerry J. Breen, 'Improving Australia's ethical review process - slow and steady wins the race'
  • J. A. Millar 'Is the Australian HREC system unsustainable?'
  • Tony Snell, 'Is the Australian HREC system sustainable - A rural perspective'
  • Paul Komesaroff, 'Response to Susan Dodds - Paul Komesaroff'
  • Paul M. McNeill, 'Research ethics review and the bureaucracy'
  • J. Savulescu, 'Is it time to abandon institutional research ethics committees?

• Susan Dodds, 2002. 'Susan Dodds' Reply', Monash Bioethics Review vol. 21, no. 3 (July), Ethics Committee Supplement; pp. 78-80.

• Susan Dodds, 2000. 'Human Research Ethics in Australia: Ethical Regulation and Public Policy', Monash Bioethics Review, 19 (2) Ethics Committee Supplement; 4 -21.

• Susan Dodds, 1998. 'Justice and Indigenous Land Rights', Inquiry 41 (2); 1-19.

• Susan Dodds, 1998. 'Citizenship, Justice and Indigenous Group-specific Rights-Citizenship and Indigenous Australia', Citizenship Studies, 2 (1); 105-119.

• Susan Dodds, 1996. 'Exercising Restraint: Autonomy, Welfare and Elderly Patients', Journal of Medical Ethics 22; 160-163.

Refereed Book Chapters

• Susan Dodds, 'Introduction: Integrating Global and Local Perspectives' in Rosie Tong, Anne Donchin and Susan Dodds, (eds) Linking Visions: Feminist Bioethics, Human Rights and the Developing World Lanham, Md.: Rowman and Littlefield 2004, pp. 1-12. ISBN 074253278X (hardcover) 0742532798 (paper).

• Susan Dodds, 2004. 'Women, Commodification and Embryonic Stem-Cell Research' James Humber and Robert F. Almeder (eds) Biomedical Ethics Reviews: Stem Cell Research Totowa, NJ: Humana Press; pp. 151-174. ISBN 1-58829-403-3.

• Susan Dodds, 2002. 'Mothers & Children: Problems for Self-ownership' James M. McLachlan (ed) Philosophical and Religious Conceptions of the Person and their Implications for Ethical, Political and Social Thought (volume 52 of the series Problems in Contemporary Philosophy) Lampeter, Wales: The Edwin Mellen Press; 139-152. ISBN 0-7734-7025-5.

• Susan Dodds, 2001. 'Property, philosophy of', entry in N. J. Smelser and Paul B. Baltes (editors), International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioural Sciences, 25 vols Pergamon, Oxford. ISBN: 0-08-043076-7 vol 18: pp. 12199-205.

• John Bern and Susan Dodds, 2000. 'On the Plurality of Interests: Aboriginal self government and land rights', in D. Ivison, P. Patton, W. Sanders (eds), Political Theory and the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Cambridge University Press: 163-79.

• Susan Dodds, 2000. 'Choice and Control in Feminist Bioethics', in Catriona Mackenzie and Natalie Stoljar (eds), Relational Autonomy in Context: Feminist Perspectives on Autonomy, Agency and the Social Self. Oxford University Press, New York; 213-235.

• Susan Dodds, 1998. 'Sex Equality', entry in Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics, Ruth Chadwick et al (eds), San Diego: Academic Press; volume 4; 53-64.

Government Commissioned booklet

• Macolm Masso, Susan Dodds, David Fildes, Heather Yeatman and Kathy Eagar. 2004. Ethical research in palliative care: a guide through the Human Research Ethics Committee process National Palliative Care Program. Commonwealth Department of Health and Aging, Commonwealth of Australia, ISBN 0642 82473 8; 31 pgs. http://www.uow.edu.au/commerce/chsd/palliative_care.html

E-Mail: sdodds@uow.edu.au
Phone: (02) 4221 3621