Conflict of interest statement: No conflicts declared
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ARTICLE
WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE BRAIN DRAIN (?)
Article first published online: 24 JUL 2011
DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-8847.2011.00300.x
© 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Additional Information
How to Cite
BRASSINGTON, I. (2012), WHAT'S WRONG WITH THE BRAIN DRAIN (?). Developing World Bioethics, 12: 113–120. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-8847.2011.00300.x
Publication History
- Issue published online: 5 NOV 2012
- Article first published online: 24 JUL 2011
Keywords:
- brain drain;
- duties;
- education;
- global South;
- justice;
- political obligation;
- poverty
ABSTRACT
One of the characteristics of the relationship between the developed and developing worlds is the ‘brain drain’– the phenomenon by which expertise moves towards richer countries, thereby condemning poorer countries to continued comparative and absolute poverty. It is tempting to see the phenomenon as a moral problem in its own right, such that there is a moral imperative to end it, that is separate from (and additional to) any moral imperative to relieve the burden of poverty. However, it is not clear why this should be so – why, that is, there is a moral reason to stem the flow of expertise in addition to seeking to improve welfare. In this paper, I examine three explanations of the putative moral aspect of the brain drain.