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Biomedical moral enhancement for psychopaths.

Junsik Yoon1

  • 1Department of Ethics Education, College of Education, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Bioethics
|November 5, 2024
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Biomedical moral enhancement (BME) for psychopaths is ethically complex. Coercive BME is largely impermissible, but voluntary BME for offenders may be ethically acceptable under specific conditions, particularly regarding informed consent.

Keywords:
biomedical moral enhancementinformed consentmedical benefitneuroethicspsychopathyright to integritystigma

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroethics
  • Moral Philosophy
  • Forensic Psychology

Background:

  • Psychopathy presents unique challenges for ethical considerations in biomedical interventions.
  • Biomedical moral enhancement (BME) aims to improve moral capacities, raising questions about its application to individuals with specific psychological profiles.
  • Existing ethical frameworks struggle to address the nuances of enhancing moral traits in populations with impaired empathy and impulse control.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To ethically evaluate the permissibility of biomedical moral enhancement (BME) for individuals with psychopathy.
  • To analyze coercive versus voluntary BME approaches in both non-criminal and offender populations.
  • To establish conditions under which voluntary BME for psychopathic offenders might be ethically justifiable.

Main Methods:

  • Ethical analysis of three distinct scenarios: coercive BME for non-criminal psychopaths, coercive BME for offenders, and voluntary BME for offenders.
  • Examination of normative implications associated with psychopathy.
  • Critique of voluntariness of consent in vulnerable populations, specifically incarcerated individuals.

Main Results:

  • Coercive BME for non-criminal psychopaths is ethically problematic due to privacy, cost, and stigma.
  • Coercive BME for psychopathic offenders violates fundamental rights to bodily and mental integrity.
  • Voluntary BME for offenders can be ethically permissible if sufficient information and appropriate incentives (e.g., parole review) are provided, ensuring informed consent.

Conclusions:

  • Coercive biomedical moral enhancement for psychopaths is generally ethically impermissible.
  • Voluntary BME for psychopathic offenders is ethically defensible under stringent conditions that safeguard consent.
  • This study advances the discourse on BME by defining criteria for the ethical application of voluntary moral enhancement in specific clinical and legal contexts.