Children and COVID-19: Evidential and ethical biases
Bengt Autzen, University College Cork, Ireland

5 – 6.30pm

JCVI policy on vaccinating children, together with the slow roll out of vaccinations for children may have knock on effects on education. Widespread transmission among children, as well as uncertainty around the effects long-COVID, may be detrimental to children’s education, health and well-being. This presentation addresses the question: Shall we vaccinate children against COVID-19? Answering this question requires both the assessment of the relevant evidence as well as normative judgements about how to allocate scarce medical resources. I will argue that current debates display both evidential and ethical biases to the detriment of children. This evidential and ethical biases may be seen as symptoms of childism, or prejudice against children. I will conclude with a discussion of the wider societal and education implications of childism.

Having studied mathematics as an undergraduate at Darmstadt University of Technology, Bengt completed a PhD in philosophy at the London School of Economics (LSE). Before joining UCC, Bengt did postdoctoral work in Bristol, Calgary, Munich and Salzburg. Bengt’s research interests are in the philosophy of science, particularly the philosophy of biology, the philosophy of medicine and the philosophy of economics.

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