# Gadamer, Habermas and Ricoeur: Toward a Hermeneutic Philosophy of Care

## TL;DR

This paper explores how philosophical ideas from Gadamer, Ricoeur, and Habermas can improve healthcare by emphasizing care over purely technical approaches.

## Contribution

The paper introduces a hermeneutic philosophy of care to challenge the dominance of techno-scientific knowledge in clinical practice.

## Key findings

- Excessive reliance on techno-scientific knowledge harms clinical outcomes.
- A hermeneutic approach can integrate theory, technique, and practice in healthcare.
- The concept of Care offers a philosophical framework for reconstructing health practices.

## Abstract

This essay builds upon the dialogue with Missel and Birkelund's reflections on the contributions of contemporary hermeneutics—particularly the work of Paul Ricoeur—to health research. While endorsing these authors’ central thesis, the present discussion seeks to extend the argument by advocating for hermeneutics’ relevance to clinical practice as well. Drawing on the ideas of Gadamer, Ricoeur, and Habermas, the text critiques the excessive hegemony of techno‐scientific knowledge over clinical practice and its harmful consequences for outcomes. It argues that revisiting Aristotle's distinction between theoria, techne, and praxis and fostering a genuine synergy among these spheres of rationality represents a potential hermeneutic contribution to the emancipatory reconstruction of health practices. The concept of Care is adopted as the philosophical horizon for this critical‐hermeneutic reconstruction.