Science and Engineering Ethics 19 (1):161-177 (2013)
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Abstract |
Emerging technologies are increasingly used in an attempt to “enhance the human body and/or mind” beyond the contemporary standards that characterize human beings. Yet, such standards are deeply controversial and it is not an easy task to determine whether the application of a given technology to an individual and its outcome can be defined as a human enhancement or not. Despite much debate on its potential or actual ethical and social impacts, human enhancement is not subject to any consensual definition. This paper proposes a timely and much needed examination of the various definitions found in the literature. We classify these definitions into four main categories: the implicit approach, the therapy-enhancement distinction, the improvement of general human capacities and the increase of well-being. After commenting on these different approaches and their limitations, we propose a definition of human enhancement that focuses on individual perceptions. While acknowledging that a definition that mainly depends on personal and subjective individual perceptions raises many challenges, we suggest that a comprehensive approach to define human enhancement could constitute a useful premise to appropriately address the complexity of the ethical and social issues it generates
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Keywords | Biomedical enhancement Enhancement technologies Genetic engineering Ethical issues |
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DOI | 10.1007/s11948-011-9294-y |
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References found in this work BETA
Enhancing Evolution: The Ethical Case for Making Better People.John Harris - 2007 - Princeton University Press.
If and Then: A Critique of Speculative Nanoethics. [REVIEW]Alfred Nordmann - 2007 - NanoEthics 1 (1):31-46.
Normal Functioning and the Treatment-Enhancement Distinction.Norman Daniels - 2000 - Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics 9 (3):309--322.
Ethical Issues in Human Enhancement.Nick Bostrom & Rebecca Roache - 2007 - In J. Ryberg, T. Petersen & C. Wolf (eds.), New Waves in Applied Ethics. Palgrave-Macmillan. pp. 120--152.
View all 28 references / Add more references
Citations of this work BETA
Cochlear Implantation, Enhancements, Transhumanism and Posthumanism: Some Human Questions.Joseph Lee - 2016 - Science and Engineering Ethics 22 (1):67-92.
Disabled or Cyborg? How Bionics Affect Stereotypes Toward People With Physical Disabilities.Bertolt Meyer & Frank Asbrock - 2018 - Frontiers in Psychology 9.
Human Presence and Robotic Mediations: An Alternative Framework for Explicating Human Enhancement.Pericle Salvini - 2014 - Humana Mente 7 (26).
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