Any attempt to consider relations among science, technology, and ethics is by definition interdisciplinary. This entry distinguishes among basic approaches to terminology, reflects on the intersection of interdisciplinarity and ethics, and assesses future prospects. Because it provides an existing model, with both strengths and weaknesses, for examining science, technology, and ethics interactions, references will often be made to the existing interdisciplinary field of science, technology, and society (STS) studies.

Forms of Interdisciplinarity

Interdisciplinarity has both broad and more restricted meanings. In the broad sense it includes a number of different forms, one of which is interdisciplinarity in a more narrow sense. There are three forms of interdisciplinarity in the broad sense that are important to distinguish, and that provide a framework for discussions of types of interdisciplinary interactions.

Multidisciplinarity juxtaposes separate disciplinary approaches around a common interest, adding breadth of knowledge and approaches. But the disciplines continue to...