Surrogate Motherhood: A Trust-Based Approach.

SURROGATE motherhood; MEDICAL practice; MEDICAL centers; PHENOMENOLOGY; MEDICAL research; BUSINESS ethics; MENTAL health; INFERTILITY; ATTITUDE (Psychology); GROUP identity; PSYCHOLOGY of parents; POWER (Social sciences); QUALITY of life; TRUST; SURROGATE mothers; PSYCHOLOGY

Because it is often argued that surrogacy should not be treated as contractual, the question arises in which terms this practice might then be couched. In this article, I argue that a phenomenology of surrogacy centering on the notion of trust provides a description that is illuminating from the moral point of view. My thesis is that surrogacy establishes a complex and extended reproductive unit--the "surrogacy triad" consisting of the surrogate mother, the child, and the intending parents--whose constituents are bound together by mutual trustful commitments. Even though a trust-based approach does not provide an ultimate answer to whether surrogacy should be sanctioned or prohibited, it allows for at least some practical suggestions. In particular, I will argue that, under certain conditions, surrogacy is tenable within familial or other significant relationships, and I will stress the necessity of acknowledging the new relationships and moral commitments that result from this practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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