David Hunter

Dr David Hunter

Senior Lecturer

Health and Medical Sciences Faculty Office

Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.

My background is in philosophy, concentrating on political philosophy and ethics, both theoretical and applied, mainly in the context of medical practice, research ethics and other professional practices. I spent the previous six years coordinating and delivering the medical ethics teaching within the medical school at Flinders University. Prior to that I spent eight years in the UK, and before that was based in New Zealand.

I am the Joint Editor in Chief of Research Ethics Forum, a book series published by Springer.
Book Review Editor for Public Health Ethics.
Advisory Board Member for the International Journal for Feminist Approaches to Bioethics.
Coordinator of the Teaching Ethics stream of the Australasian Association of Bioethics and Health Law.

  • Appointments
    Date Position Institution name
    2020 - ongoing Senior Lecturer in Ethics and Professionalism University of Adelaide
    2013 - 2019 Associate Professor of Medical Ethics Flinders University
    2011 - 2013 Teaching Fellow University of Birmingham
    2008 - 2011 Lecturer in Ethics Keele University
    2005 - 2008 Lecturer in Biomedical Ethics University of Ulster
    2004 - 2005 Associate Lecturer in Philosophy Massey University
    2000 - 2004 Tutor in philosophy University of Auckland

  • Education
    Date Institution name Country Title
    2003 - 2008 University of Auckland New Zealand PhD

  • Research Interests
    Applied Ethics Bioethics Ethical Theory Medical Ethics Political Philosophy Professional Ethics

  • Journals
    Year Citation
    2020 Veit, W., Savulescu, J., Hunter, D., Earp, B., & Wilkinson, D. (2020). Are Generational Welfare Trades Always Unjust?. American Journal of Bioethics, 20(9), 70-72.
    DOI Scopus2 WoS2 Europe PMC1
    2019 Carter, D. A., Merlin, T., & Hunter, D. (2019). An ethical analysis of coverage with evidence development. Value in Health, 22(8), 878-883.
    DOI Scopus2 WoS3 Europe PMC1
    2019 Ng, J., Little, C. B., Woods, S., Whittle, S., Lee, F. Y., Gronthos, S., . . . Worthley, D. L. (2019). Stem cell directed therapies for osteoarthritis: the promise and the practice: concise review. Stem Cells, 38(4), 477-486.
    DOI Scopus12 WoS10 Europe PMC6
    2018 Benson, S., & Hunter, D. (2018). Is there a nocebo response that results from disease awareness campaigns and advertising in Australia, and can this effect be mitigated?. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ETHICS, 44(9), 621-625.
    DOI
    2016 Hunter, D. (2016). Response to: 'We could be heroes: ethical issues with the pre-recruitment of research participants' by D. Hunter. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ETHICS, 42(3), 206.
    DOI
    2015 Hunter, D. (2015). We could be heroes: ethical issues with the pre-recruitment of research participants. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ETHICS, 41(7), 557-558.
    DOI WoS2 Europe PMC2
    2015 Hunter, D. (2015). Is research ethics regulation really killing people?. MEDICAL JOURNAL OF AUSTRALIA, 202(6), 338-+.
    DOI WoS5 Europe PMC3
    2014 Hunter, D. (2014). Can significant differences in regulating medical and non-medical research be justified?. Monash bioethics review, 32(3-4), 254-267.
    DOI
    2013 Hunter, D. (2013). Can the Regulatory Response to SUPPORT be Supported?. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOETHICS, 13(12), 37-39.
    DOI WoS2 Europe PMC1
    2013 Hunter, D. (2013). How to Object to Radically New Technologies on the Basis of Justice: The Case of Synthetic Biology. BIOETHICS, 27(8), 426-434.
    DOI WoS6 Europe PMC1
    2013 Hunter, D. (2013). How not to argue against mandatory ethics review. JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ETHICS, 39(8), 521-524.
    DOI WoS3 Europe PMC1
    2012 Hunter, D. (2012). Why Even Inappropriate Parental Consent Might Be Enough to Justify Minimal Risk Pediatric Research Without Clinical Benefit. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOETHICS, 12(1), 35-36.
    DOI
    2012 Hunter, D. (2012). Are new genetic technologies unlucky for Luck Egalitarianism?. Ethical Perspectives, 19(1), 33-54.
    DOI Scopus1 WoS1
    2011 Hunter, D. (2011). A hands-on guide on obtaining research ethics approval. POSTGRADUATE MEDICAL JOURNAL, 87(1030), 509-513.
    DOI WoS5 Europe PMC3
    2010 Hunter, D. (2010). Is There a Case for a Distinction Between Ethics and Policy?. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOETHICS, 10(6), 24-25.
    DOI WoS1 Europe PMC2
    2010 Wilson, J., & Hunter, D. (2010). Research Exceptionalism. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOETHICS, 10(8), 45-54.
    DOI WoS43 Europe PMC29
    2010 Hunter, D., & Wilson, J. (2010). Responses to open peer commentaries on "research exceptionalism".. The American journal of bioethics : AJOB, 10(8), W4-W6.
    DOI Europe PMC1
    2010 Hunter, D., & Oultram, S. (2010). The ethical and policy implications of rogue medical tourism. Global Social Policy, 10(3), 297-299.
    DOI
    2008 Hunter, D. L. (2008). Using the community of inquiry methodology in teaching bioethics: a focus on skills development.. Monash bioethics review, 27(1-2), 33-41.
    DOI Europe PMC1
    2008 Hunter, D., & Oultram, S. (2008). The challenge of "sperm ships": The need for the global regulation of medical technology. Journal of Medical Ethics, 34(7), 552-556.
    DOI Scopus9 WoS8 Europe PMC1
    2008 Hunter, D. L. H. (2008). The ESRC research ethics framework and research ethics review at UK universities: Rebuilding the Tower of Babel REC by REC. Journal of Medical Ethics, 34(11), 815-820.
    DOI Scopus13 WoS13 Europe PMC4
    2008 Elliott, L., & Hunter, D. (2008). The experiences of ethics committee members: Contradictions between individuals and committees. Journal of Medical Ethics, 34(6), 489-494.
    DOI Scopus7 WoS7 Europe PMC4
    2007 Hunter, D. (2007). Efficiency and the proposed reforms to the NHS research ethics system. Journal of Medical Ethics, 33(11), 651-654.
    DOI Scopus8 WoS8 Europe PMC5
    2007 Hunter, D. (2007). Proportional ethical review and the identification of ethical issues. Journal of Medical Ethics, 33(4), 241-245.
    DOI Scopus23 WoS24 Europe PMC13
    2007 Hunter, D., & Pierscionek, B. K. (2007). Children, Gillick competency and consent for involvement in research. Journal of Medical Ethics, 33(11), 659-662.
    DOI Scopus45 WoS40 Europe PMC18
    2007 Hunter, D. (2007). The Roles of Research Ethics Committees: Implications for Membership. Research Ethics, 3(1), 24-26.
    DOI
    2007 Hunter, D. (2007). Am I my brother's gatekeeper? Professional ethics and the prioritisation of healthcare. Journal of Medical Ethics, 33(9), 522-526.
    DOI Scopus9 WoS5 Europe PMC3
    2006 Hunter, D. (2006). An Alternative University-Wide Model for the Ethical Review of Human Subject Research. Research Ethics, 2(2), 47-50.
    DOI
    2006 Hunter, D. (2006). One-time general consent for research on biological samples: Autonomy and majority rules have been misunderstood [3]. British Medical Journal, 332(7542), 665-666.
    DOI Scopus7 WoS6 Europe PMC2

  • Book Chapters
    Year Citation
    2022 Hunter, D. (2022). Bad Science Equals Poor, Not Necessarily Bad, Ethics. In Ethics, Law and Society (pp. 61-70). Routledge.
    DOI
    2008 Hunter, D. (2008). Bad science equals poor, not necessarily bad, ethics. In Ethics, Law and Society (pp. 61-70).
    Scopus3

  • Current Higher Degree by Research Supervision (University of Adelaide)
    Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
    2023 Co-Supervisor Non-ideal Theory and Real-World Dilemmas Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Elinor Daisy Heather Pryce
    2022 Co-Supervisor Ethics and orthodontics – it depends on the perspective Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Dr Maurice Meade

  • Committee Memberships
    Date Role Committee Institution Country
    2018 - ongoing Member South Australian Policy Advisory Committee on Technology SA Health Australia
  • Position: Senior Lecturer
  • Phone: 83133089
  • Email: david.hunter@adelaide.edu.au
  • Campus: North Terrace
  • Building: Helen Mayo North, floor 3
  • Org Unit: Administration Office
Connect With Me
External Profiles