233041 SE 'Investing life through and through' (2024S)
Pharmaceutical capitalism and the global political economies of drug innovation
Prüfungsimmanente Lehrveranstaltung
Labels
An/Abmeldung
Hinweis: Ihr Anmeldezeitpunkt innerhalb der Frist hat keine Auswirkungen auf die Platzvergabe (kein "first come, first served").
- Anmeldung von Do 01.02.2024 09:00 bis Mi 21.02.2024 23:59
- Abmeldung bis Fr 15.03.2024 23:59
Details
max. 25 Teilnehmer*innen
Sprache: Englisch
Lehrende
Termine (iCal) - nächster Termin ist mit N markiert
- Mittwoch 06.03. 09:30 - 12:30 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
- Mittwoch 20.03. 09:30 - 12:30 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
- Mittwoch 17.04. 09:30 - 12:30 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
- Mittwoch 15.05. 09:30 - 12:30 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
- Mittwoch 29.05. 09:30 - 12:30 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
- Mittwoch 12.06. 09:30 - 12:30 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
- Mittwoch 26.06. 09:30 - 12:30 Seminarraum STS, NIG Universitätsstraße 7/Stg. II/6. Stock, 1010 Wien
Information
Ziele, Inhalte und Methode der Lehrveranstaltung
Art der Leistungskontrolle und erlaubte Hilfsmittel
Students are expected to prepare the required readings before each session individually and jointly discuss the readings in small reading groups. The readings will then be discussed during the seminar sessions, reflecting on their (sometimes tacit) conceptual, methodological, empirical and normative commitments.
Mindestanforderungen und Beurteilungsmaßstab
To successfully complete the seminar, students are required to fulfill the following tasks:
1. Reading Group Protocols (1p/session):
• At the commencement of the semester, students are to establish reading groups consisting of approximately 4-5 members. These groups are expected to engage in continuous reading, discussion, and reflection on the obligatory literature assigned for the seminar.
• Prior to each individual session, each group must complete a reading protocol of approximately 1 page. The purpose of these protocols is to reflect on pertinent questions and discussion points, as well as to synthesize the knowledge acquired from the new texts in the context of the seminar's overarching question.
• Groups are also required to formulate 1-2 questions based on the texts, serving as a basis for our in-class discussions.
2. Oral Presentation :
• Groups will deliver an oral presentation
• The presentation should integrate various strands and conceptual elements from the literature covered in the seminar, focused on an overarching research question.
• Grounded in thematic research, the presentation should delve into a specific empirical field within pharmaceutical capitalism.
• Oral presentations must be accompanied by an EXTENDED HANDOUT (approximately 3 pages).
3. Term Paper (8-10 pages, word count approximately 3,500):
• The term paper is an individual assignment aimed at deepening the knowledge acquired from the literature and seminar discussions, aligning with one's personal interests, and applying it through a small case study.
• It should be submitted via Moodle by July 15th, 2024.
• The paper title and topic must be mutually agreed upon with the lecturer before the course concludes, especially if it significantly deviates from the initial presentation.
• The paper must include a cover page, a table of contents, and a comprehensive references list.
• The paper itself should explicitly state the chosen question, its relevance to the course, and the conceptual framework (including empirical materials/data used) for the analysis.
• Additionally, the paper should develop a set of conclusions based on the undertaken analysis.
1. Reading Group Protocols (1p/session):
• At the commencement of the semester, students are to establish reading groups consisting of approximately 4-5 members. These groups are expected to engage in continuous reading, discussion, and reflection on the obligatory literature assigned for the seminar.
• Prior to each individual session, each group must complete a reading protocol of approximately 1 page. The purpose of these protocols is to reflect on pertinent questions and discussion points, as well as to synthesize the knowledge acquired from the new texts in the context of the seminar's overarching question.
• Groups are also required to formulate 1-2 questions based on the texts, serving as a basis for our in-class discussions.
2. Oral Presentation :
• Groups will deliver an oral presentation
• The presentation should integrate various strands and conceptual elements from the literature covered in the seminar, focused on an overarching research question.
• Grounded in thematic research, the presentation should delve into a specific empirical field within pharmaceutical capitalism.
• Oral presentations must be accompanied by an EXTENDED HANDOUT (approximately 3 pages).
3. Term Paper (8-10 pages, word count approximately 3,500):
• The term paper is an individual assignment aimed at deepening the knowledge acquired from the literature and seminar discussions, aligning with one's personal interests, and applying it through a small case study.
• It should be submitted via Moodle by July 15th, 2024.
• The paper title and topic must be mutually agreed upon with the lecturer before the course concludes, especially if it significantly deviates from the initial presentation.
• The paper must include a cover page, a table of contents, and a comprehensive references list.
• The paper itself should explicitly state the chosen question, its relevance to the course, and the conceptual framework (including empirical materials/data used) for the analysis.
• Additionally, the paper should develop a set of conclusions based on the undertaken analysis.
Prüfungsstoff
Literatur
All readings for this class will be made available on the Moodle page. However, a printed version of the reader can be bought at the Teaching Assistant’s office during their office hours, if desired.
Zuordnung im Vorlesungsverzeichnis
Letzte Änderung: Mo 12.02.2024 16:06
In this seminar, we will use the politics of drug innovation as an entry point to explore the role of pharmaceuticals in society. How are new drugs researched and commercialized? What defines a drug as a 'good' medicine from the standpoint of various stakeholders (scientists, regulators, industry, patients)? What are the downsides of a pharmaceutical innovation system that selectively invests in profitable diseases?In common parlance, 'pharmaceutical innovation' is often used as a shorthand for either the process of bringing 'new drugs to the market,' emphasizing technoscientific criteria and commercial relevance, or it is equated with therapeutic progress – i.e., new, improved therapies, emphasizing patients' needs and clinical relevance. The tensions between the technical-commercial and therapeutic-medical aims of pharmaceutical innovation form the core of pharmaceutical capitalism, giving rise to conflicts, contradictions, and crises.This seminar aims to unpack these narrow notions of pharmaceutical innovation and explore critical sites and processes of the politics shaping the production, commercialization, and consumption of pharmaceuticals. Building on STS-informed approaches, we will approach 'innovation' as a boundary object that articulates the spheres of science and the economy. From this vantage point, we will study the politics of innovation in the pharmaceutical field, delving into the frictions, conflicts, and contradictions generated by the tensions between clinical and commercial relevance, between medicine and the market, and between the technical and therapeutic meanings of innovation. At stake in innovation are questions of values – how values are articulated across different domains (therapeutic, commercial, scientific, ethical, etc.).Focusing on the nexus between knowledge production and value generation in the pharmaceutical sector, we will analyze the multiple conflicts over the ways novel pharmaceuticals were produced and put to use – in scientific, economic, and ethical terms. We will explore and scrutinize various cases, processes, and venues where medicines are designed, tested, manufactured, traded, consumed, where knowledge claims about their safety and efficacy are articulated and contested, and where their differential values as public goods and commercial commodities are problematized.Aims
* Develop a research specialization in politics of innovation by focusing the particular empirical field of pharmaceuticals* Develop a solid overview of the field of social studies of pharmaceuticals by engaging with key STS-informed literature* Advance academic research and writing skills by working on an individual research-based term paper focusing on a particular aspect or dimension of the global politics of pharmaceutical innovationMethods/Didactics
Learning through literature study of key aspects of pharmaceutical innovation. This seminar is designed as a reading-intensive course. An interest in conceptual debates is a prerequisite for the seminar. The focus is on reading and working through the obligatory literature .