Critical neuroscience meets medical humanities

Area of Science:

• Medical Humanities
• Neuroscience
• Sociology of Science

Background:

• The increasing public prominence of brain-related discourses and technologies.
• The need for critical perspectives on the intersection of science, economics, and personhood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a conceptual framework for critical Medical Humanities research.
• To explore the entanglements of personhood with biocapital and critical neuroscience.

Main Methods:

• Revisiting Kaushik Sunder Rajan's account of biocapital.
• Integrating biocapital with a critical neuroscience perspective.
• Developing an analytical scheme with five focal nodes: capital, life, technoscience, (neoliberal) politics, and subjectivity.

Main Results:

• The framework emphasizes the critical role of subjectivity in understanding the interplay of science, technology, and economic formations.
• Contemporary framings of subjectivity reveal deep entanglements of personhood with scientific and medical practices.
• The emerging 'prospective health consumer' subject position is a key site of convergence between neuroscience and other medico-scientific disciplines.

Conclusions:

• The proposed framework offers a novel approach for critical Medical Humanities research.
• Understanding biocapital and critical neuroscience is crucial for analyzing contemporary subjectivity.
• The concept of the 'prospective health consumer' illustrates the complex relationship between individuals, health, and economic systems.