Bioethics author Eric Parens to speak on treating children with psychotropic drugs April 29th

Erik Parens, Ph.D, senior research scholar at the The Hastings Center will present "The Ethics of Treating Children with Psychotropic Drugs" as the University of New England's 2010 Crosley Lecture at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 29, 2010.

The lecture will take place in Ludcke Auditorium on UNE's Portland Campus, 716 Stevens Avenue in Portland. This event is free, and open to the public.

In his work at The Hastings Center, Dr. Parens investigates how we use new technologies to shape our selves and how emerging science shapes our self-understanding. 

Currently he is the principal investigator on a project, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, that explores the controversies surrounding the use of psychotropic medications to treat emotional and behavioral disturbances in children. 

He is also the principal investigator on a project, funded by The Dana Foundation, that investigates the difference between reasonable and unreasonable claims based on neuroimaging technologies (such as fMRI). 

He has lectured and published widely, and is the first or sole editor of four books, including, most recently, Surgically Shaping Children: Essays on Technology, Ethics, and the Pursuit of Normality. 

He has served as a consultant to several government and nongovernmental bodies, including the National Bioethics Advisory Commission and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He is also a visiting professor in the Program in Science, Technology, and Society at Sarah Lawrence College.

The Crosley Lecture

The Crosley Lecture in Ethics has been given since 1984. The purpose of the lecture series is to bring distinguished scholars to the University of New England to address ethical issues in contemporary life.

The UNE Crosley Lecture is an annual endowed lecture created to honor the Rev. Marion Crosley and his wife, Mehitable Adelia Swift Crosley. The Rev. Crosley was a Universalist minister who lived in Portland from 1885 to 1889 and served on the board of the Westbrook Seminary, which later became Westbrook College, which merged with the University of New England in 1996.

For more information, contact Ronald Morrison at rmorrison@une.edu or (207) 602-2108.