Medical interventions rarely take place in emotionally neutral contexts. Even in the best-equipped hospitals with the most impressive medical staff, people are afraid, anxious, lonely, despondent, angry, frustrated – pick your favourite negative emotional state, or combination thereof. In this talk I argue that these affectively laden states have implications for people’s trust in medical interventions and the underpinning science. I provide an account of affective distrust, which does not dismiss agents as irrational or incapable of making good choices for themselves or their loved ones, and I outline some implications that medical practitioners should be aware of when working in these contexts.

Biography

Katherine is currently a research fellow at the SOCRATES (Social Credibility and Trustworthiness of Expert Knowledge and Science-Based Information) in Hanover. She is usually the Lecturer of Philosophy, Politics and Economics at the University of Liverpool. Previously, she directed the MA in Health of Society at University College Cork, Ireland. She holds a PhD from the London School of Economics.

Coffee, tea, cake and fruit will be served before the colloquium @ 2 pm.