Consciousness and the Ethics of Human Brain Organoid Research

Bibliographic Data

ID21598349
AuthorsKarola V Kreitmair (0000-0002-6808-9713, University of Wisconsin–Madison, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume32
Issue4
Pages518-528
Publication date2023-10-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0963-1801 • E-ISSN: 1469-2147
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0963180123000063
PMID36951014
OpenAlexW4360600262
LanguageEN
References cited39

The possibility of consciousness in human brain organoids is sometimes viewed as determinative in terms of the moral status such entities possess, and, in turn, in terms of the research protections such entities are due. This commonsense view aligns with a prominent stance in neurology and neuroscience that consciousness admits of degrees. My paper outlines these views and provides an argument for why this picture of correlating degrees of consciousness with moral status and research protections is mistaken. I then provide an alternative account of the correlation between moral status and consciousness, and consider the epistemic ramifications for research protections of this account

Cognitive science · Consciousness · Determinative · Epistemology · Neuroethics · Organoid · Sentience · Medicine · Mental Health and Psychiatry · Neuroethics, Human Enhancement, Biomedical Innovations · Neuroscience · Philosophy · Psychology · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment

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