Paul Root Wolpe (born February 26, 1957), is an American sociologist and

bioethicist Bioethics is both a field of study and professional practice, interested in ethical issues related to health (primarily focused on the human, but also increasingly includes animal ethics), including those emerging from advances in biology, med ...

. He is the Raymond F. Schinazi Distinguished Research Chair in Jewish Bioethics and a professor at

Emory University Emory University is a private research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1836 as "Emory College" by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory, Emory is the second-oldest private institution of ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. Wolpe served for 15 years as the Bioethicist for the

National Aeronautics and Space Administration The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding th ...

(NASA). He was Co-Editor of the

American Journal of Bioethics The ''American Journal of Bioethics'' is a monthly peer-reviewed academic journal published by Taylor & Francis, covering all aspects of bioethics. It publishes target articles, open peer commentaries, editorials, book reviews, and case studies ...

(AJOB), and is Editor-In-Chief of AJOB Neuroscience, the official Journal of the International Neuroethics Society (INS). Wolpe is also a member of the board of directors Executive Committee of the INS. He is the brother of

David Wolpe David J. Wolpe (born 1958) is the Max Webb Senior Rabbi of Sinai Temple. He previously taught at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York, the American Jewish University in Los Angeles, Hunter College, and UCLA. Wolpe became the ...

History

Wolpe was born on February 26, 1957, in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

. He completed his undergraduate degree in the sociology and psychology of religion at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

. Wolpe earned an M.A., M.Phil., and PhD from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

. He spent 3.5 years in the Department of

Psychiatry Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry. Initial psych ...

Jefferson Medical College Thomas Jefferson University is a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Established in its earliest form in 1824, the university officially combined with Philadelphia University in 2017. To signify its heritage, the univer ...

. Wolpe returned to the

, where he taught for over 20 years. He was a Senior Fellow of Penn's Center for Bioethics where he directed the Scattergood Program for the Applied Ethics of Behavioral Health and the Program in Psychiatry and Ethics at the School of Medicine. He moved to the faculty of

in 2008.

Teaching and publications

Wolpe has written over 150 articles, editorials, encyclopedia articles, and book chapters in

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

, and

bioethics Bioethics is both a field of study and professional practice, interested in ethical issues related to health (primarily focused on the human, but also increasingly includes animal ethics), including those emerging from advances in biology, med ...

, as well as general

ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns m ...

. He co-authored the textbook ''Sexuality and Gender in Society'', and the end-of-life guide ''Behoref Hayamim: In the Winter of Life''.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolpe, Paul Root 1957 births American sociologists Bioethicists Living people 20th-century American Jews Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy alumni Presidents of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities 21st-century American Jews