Doctor of Philosophy

dissertationThis project concerns a deeply contested moral ideal: autonomy. To be autonomous is to have authority over one's self and to govern one's life on the basis of value commitments one deems important. One of the dominant views of liberalism - antiperfectionist comprehensive liberalism - distinguishes itself from other liberal views because it grants unique privilege to the ideal of autonomy in personal and political life. Will Kymlicka is one of the most prominent defenders of antiperfectionist comprehensive liberalism and while he appeals to the ideal of autonomy in his liberalism, he is not clear about which theory of autonomy he is appealing to. As a result, his theory of autonomy is sketchy and incomplete. As an autonomy theorist, I think that there is more Kymlicka can say to elaborate on the view of autonomy operating in his theory of liberalism. Kymlicka has not explained whether his view is a procedural, or substantive, or a socio-relational view and these exhaust the kinds of views of autonomy in the literature, so Kymlicka's view must be one of these. It is important for Kymlicka to be clear on the view of autonomy he incorporates because each theory has its own motivating assumptions and standards for what counts as an autonomous choice. In addition, it is important for Kymlicka to be clear about the theory of autonomy in his liberalism, because, in some cases, the standards for autonomy may be inconsistent with his liberal commitments. In this project, I argue that Kymlicka incorporates a socio-relational view of autonomy in his liberalism

A Three Species Model to Simulate Application of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy to Chronic Wounds

Chronic wounds are a significant socioeconomic problem for governments worldwide. Approximately 15% of people who suffer from diabetes will experience a lower-limb ulcer at some stage of their lives, and 24% of these wounds will ultimately result in amputation of the lower limb. Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) has been shown to aid the healing of chronic wounds; however, the causal reasons for the improved healing remain unclear and hence current HBOT protocols remain empirical. Here we develop a three-species mathematical model of wound healing that is used to simulate the application of hyperbaric oxygen therapy in the treatment of wounds. Based on our modelling, we predict that intermittent HBOT will assist chronic wound healing while normobaric oxygen is ineffective in treating such wounds. Furthermore, treatment should continue until healing is complete, and HBOT will not stimulate healing under all circumstances, leading us to conclude that finding the right protocol for an individual patient is crucial if HBOT is to be effective. We provide constraints that depend on the model parameters for the range of HBOT protocols that will stimulate healing. More specifically, we predict that patients with a poor arterial supply of oxygen, high consumption of oxygen by the wound tissue, chronically hypoxic wounds, and/or a dysfunctional endothelial cell response to oxygen are at risk of nonresponsiveness to HBOT. The work of this paper can, in some way, highlight which patients are most likely to respond well to HBOT (for example, those with a good arterial supply), and thus has the potential to assist in improving both the success rate and hence the cost-effectiveness of this therapy

Some feminist reflections on autonomy, self-respect, and the liberal state

Recently, the women of a breakaway polygamist Mormon sect in Bountiful, B.C. defended their choice of religious beliefs, which are premised upon female submission and inferiority. In response to this case, I asked: what conditions must obtain in order that we can say that an individual has chosen autonomously? In this project, I offer a weakly substantive account of personal autonomy, which states that an autonomous individual must meet certain procedural conditions and must have self-respect. In addition, I argue that a weakly substantive account is attractive for feminist aims and for women in general. However, the account of personal autonomy I offer is problematic for political liberalism, in that political liberalism is committed implicitly to the account of personal autonomy that I have set forth. This raises questions around the claim that political liberalism does not favour any comprehensive doctrine in its political conception of justice

Developing Vulnerability: A Situational Response to the Abuse of Women with Mental Disabilities

In this paper I present a critical analysis of the English law relating to the safeguarding of vulnerable adults, in particular how the law impacts on the sexual lives of adult women with mental disabilities. I consider the discourses of vulnerability that surround the different legal regimes and whether the emerging theoretical vulnerability literature can assist in developing more nuanced legal responses. I argue that the inherent jurisdiction and Care Act 2014 provide an opportunity to move away from the focus on inherent features of vulnerability such as mental disability towards a more nuanced, situational and embodied account of what it means to safeguard ‘vulnerable adults’. This has the potential to be developed in England through the new legal framework of the Care Act and can be achieved through targeting interventions against the situational causes of vulnerability, for example the perpetrators of sexual violence