Justice, fairness, and enhancement

Area of Science:

• Bioethics
• Philosophy of Sport
• Social Justice

Background:

• Traditional definitions of human enhancement are insufficient.
• Fairness in enhancement, especially in sports, raises significant ethical questions.
• Understanding the natural distribution of capabilities and disabilities is crucial for enhancement debates.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a novel Welfarist definition of enhancement.
• To analyze fairness-based objections to human enhancement.
• To develop a new argument that justice mandates enhancement.

Main Methods:

• Conceptual analysis of enhancement definitions.
• Examination of fairness objections using sport as a case study.
• Review of theories of justice and capability distribution.
• Distinction between social, psychological, and biological enhancement.

Main Results:

• A new Welfarist definition of enhancement is proposed.
• Fairness objections to enhancement are critically assessed within the context of sport.
• The article distinguishes between social, psychological, and biological forms of enhancement.
• A novel argument linking justice and enhancement is advanced.

Conclusions:

• Justice requires human enhancement.
• The Welfarist definition offers a more comprehensive understanding of enhancement.
• Ethical considerations of fairness are vital in the discourse on human enhancement.