Performance-enhancing technologies and moral responsibility in the military.

Full Abstract

New scientific advances have created previously unheard of possibilities for enhancing combatants' performance. Future war fighters may be smarter, stronger, and braver than ever before. If these technologies are safe, is there any reason to reject their use? In this article, I argue that the use of enhancements is constrained by the importance of maintaining the moral responsibility of military personnel. This is crucial for two reasons:
the military's ethical commitments require military personnel to be morally responsible agents, and moral responsibility is necessary for integrity and the moral emotions of guilt and remorse, both of which are important for moral growth and psychological well-being. Enhancements that undermined combatants' moral responsibility would therefore undermine the military's moral standing and would harm combatants' well-being. A genuine commitment to maintaining the military's ethical standards and the well-being of combatants therefore requires a careful analysis of performance-enhancing technologies before they are implemented.

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Author information

Author/s: Wolfendale, Jessica (J);

Affiliation: Centre for Applied Philosophy and Public Ethics, Department of Philosophy, University of Melbourne, VIC 3010, Australia. jwo@unimelb.edu.au

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article

Journal: The American journal of bioethics : AJOB (Am J Bioeth), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2008-Feb; vol 8 (issue 2) : pp 28-38

Dates: Created 2008/06/23; Completed 2008/07/22;

PMID: 18570075, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/6/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

Comments and Corrections

CommentIn: Am J Bioeth. 2008 Feb;8(2):39-41; discussion W4-6. (PMID: 18570076)

CommentIn: Am J Bioeth. 2008 Feb;8(2):42-3; discussion W4-6. (PMID: 18570077)

CommentIn: Am J Bioeth. 2008 Feb;8(2):44-5; discussion W4-6. (PMID: 18570078)

CommentIn: Am J Bioeth. 2008 Feb;8(2):46-7; discussion W4-6. (PMID: 18570079)

CommentIn: Am J Bioeth. 2008 Feb;8(2):47-9; discussion W4-6. (PMID: 18570080)

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Awareness
Biomedical Enhancement - ethics
Coercion
Cognition - drug effects
Conscience
Emotions
Fatigue - prevention & control
Fear
Guilt
Humans

Military Medicine - ethics
Military Personnel - legislation & jurisprudence; psychology
Moral Obligations
Personal Autonomy
Psychomotor Performance - drug effects; ethics
Social Behavior
Social Justice
Social Responsibility
Virtues
War - ethics

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