Right to mental integrity and neurotechnologies: implications of the extended mind thesis.
Journal of Medical Ethics September 20, 2024 Vera Tesink, Thomas Douglas, Lisa Forsberg et al.
How the mind is defined—whether confined to the brain or extended into the world—affects the moral right to mental integrity and the protection it offers against neurotechnologies. If the mind is seen as brain-based, neurotechnologies pose a uniquely serious threat. But if the mind is understood as extended, the right's scope expands: neurotechnologies no longer represent a uniquely serious threat, and some may even become part of the mind and thus be protected by the right. Metaphysical assumptions about the mind thus play a crucial role in determining the moral protection provided by the right to mental integrity.