Children, their Brains… and Beyond: Reflections on a Feminist Ethic of Research

In interlocution with authors from the field of science studies as well as feminist theories of care, I reflect on the ethical dilemma associated with the participation of social scientists in the multidisciplinary arena of public policy. I build my analysis around an image frequently found in debates on child-protection policy that juxtaposes two infantile brains, one labeled “normal”, and the other, “extreme neglect”. Upon tracing the unorthodox trajectory of this neuroscientific artefact through concrete actors and situations, I propose to reinforce a critical perspective of popularized forms of science that tend to ignore the value judgments implicit in any “scientific fact”. On the other hand, in a self-reflexive exercise, I seek to understand how the researcher’s “caring”, in its diverse manifestations, carries implications for the ethical and political becoming of the worlds under consideration.

Key-words:
Feminist research ethics; Care; Child development; Neuroscientific turn