Eike Buhr M.Ed.
Contact
Doctoral student
Postal address
Visting address
Eike Buhr M.Ed.
Eike Buhr studied history and philosophy in Münster and completed his Second State Examination in Recklinghausen. He worked as a research assistant at the Institute of Educational Science in Münster and on the BMBF-funded project “Neuroenhancement in Education and the Workplace” (NEIBA), and held a teaching appointment in the Faculties of Computer Science and Social Sciences at Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences. Since January 2020, he has been a research associate in the Division of Ethics in Medicine and, since 2026, also in the Health Division at OFFIS – Institute for Information Technology.
In his doctoral dissertation, he developed an empirically informed theory of the value of privacy in technology-assisted dementia care. His research focuses on digitalisation, particularly artificial intelligence and machine learning, as well as on ethical and theoretical questions in psychiatry, theories of the good life, and contemporary theories of justice.
His research combines philosophical ethics with epistemology and philosophy of science. His work is guided by the question of how AI-based technologies not only change options for action and decision-making but also shape scientific practices, forms of knowledge and evidence, and the ways in which people understand themselves and others. Methodologically, he draws on philosophical analysis as well as empirical social research methods, such as interviews, focus groups, observation, and Delphi studies.
Within the division, he is particularly involved in coordinating the BMFTR-funded TESIComP project and working on the TransVer project. He is also an appointed member of the Ethics Committee at the Karl-Jaspers-Klinik. In addition, he is active in the “Digitalisation and Society” and “Ethics in Psychiatry” working groups of the Academy for Ethics in Medicine, as well as in the “Philosophy of Digitality” working group of the German Society for Philosophy.
CV
| Since 01/2020 | Research Assistant in the Division for Ethics in Medicine at the Department for Health Services Research, School for Medicine and Health Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg |
| Winter term 2019/20 | Associate lecturer at the department of social sciences at the Hochschule Darmstadt |
| 2015/16 | Research assistant in the project “Neuro-enhancement in the educational and business sector” |
| 10/2016-08/2017 | 10/2016 – 08/2017 Student assistant at the Institute for Educational Science at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster |
| 04/2019 | 2nd state examination |
| 05/2017 | Master of Education - History and Philosophy, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster |
| 08/2016 | Bachelor of Arts - History and Philosophy, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster |
Research Focus
- Concept of Privacy (in the bioethical context)
- Digitization of Healthcare
- Ethical and Theoretical Questions in Neuroscience
- Contemporary Theories of Justice
- Theories of the Good Life
- Ethics in Psychiatry
Publications
Articles (selection)
- Buhr, E.; Shaukat, SM.; Welsch, J (2024): Value Preference Profiles and Ethical Compliance Quantification: A New Approach for Ethics by Design in Technology-Assisted Dementia Care. In: AI & Soc. doi.org/10.1007/s00146-024-01947-7
- Buhr, E., Fischer, M., Biernetzky, O., Teipel, S., Gruber, O., & Schweda, M. (2025). Use of Artificial Intelligence in Psychiatric Research and Practice: A Qualitative Interview Study with Experts from Psychiatry, Computer Science and Philosophy in Germany. European Psychiatry, 68(1), e105, Article e105. https://doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2025.10075
- Tian, Y. J., Duong, V., Buhr, E., Felber, N. A., Schwab, D. R., & Wangmo, T. (2024). Monitored and Cared for at Home? Privacy Concerns When Using Smart Home Health Technologies to Care for Older Persons. AJOB Empirical Bioethics, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1080/23294515.2024.2416121
- Buhr, E., & Schweda, M. (2022). Der Wert des Privaten für Menschen mit Demenz. Ethik in der Medizin, 266(5), 7. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00481-022-00723-9
Conference contributions (selection):
- Buhr, Eike: Ethical implications of theoretical assumptions of the use of AI in psychiatric research and practice, Presentation at the Symposium “AI Ethics & Human-Computer Inter-action” at University of Graz, 06.-07.03.2024
- Buhr, E; Schweda, M: Participant Observation as a Method for Empirical Bioethics, Presentation at the annual conference of the European Society for Philosophy of Medicine and Healthcare, 23.-26.08.2023, Riga.
- Buhr, E; Schweda, Mark: Technische Assistenzsysteme und Menschen mit Demenz – eine ethische Analyse der Beziehungsgestaltung im Film anhand des Beispiels Robot & Frank, Vortrag auf der Jahrestagung der Akademie für Ethik in der Medizin, Frankfurt am Main, 29.09.2022-01.10.2022. (Ausgezeichnet mit dem Nachwuchspreis für den besten Vortrag)
- Buhr, E: Privacy beyond autonomy in bioethics: meaning and potential of an ambiguous term, Vortrag auf dem World Congress of Bioethics, Basel 20.-22.07.2022
- Buhr, E; Schweda, Mark: The value of privacy for people with dementia in technology-assisted dementia care: widening the scope beyond data protection, Vortrag auf dem World Congress of Bioethics, Basel, 20.-22.07.2022.