The Ethical Debate on Cognitive Enhancement (인지향상에 관한 윤리적 논쟁)

SangMok Lee (이상목); Jong hyun Choi (최종현)

doi:10.35301/ksme.2013.16.2.231

The Ethical Debate on Cognitive Enhancement

Korean Journal of Medical Ethics
Abbr : 의료윤리
2013, 16(2), pp.231-248
DOI : 10.35301/ksme.2013.16.2.231
Publisher : The Korean Society For Medical Ethics
Research Area : Medicine and Pharmacy > General Medicine
Published : August 31, 2013

SangMok Lee ¹, Jong hyun Choi ²

¹동아대학교
²부산대학교

Accredited

ABSTRACT

Since the last part of the 20th century, some healthy people have widely used central nervous system stimulants as cognitive enhancers and this phenomenon has become not only a social issue but also an important academic issue. When some scholars, especially neuroethicsts seek to legalize the cognitive enhancers used by healthy adults, there has been a huge debate over legalizing cognitive enhancement. Critics on cognitive enhancement point out five ethical problems if cognitive enhancement would be allowed by the pharmaceutical authority and widely spread in a western society. First, cognitive enhancement has a safety problem and could cause various side effects, addiction, and cognitive tradeoff. Second, cognitive enhancement is morally undesirable because it is unnatural. Third, cognitive enhancement before the exam might be cheating. Forth, cognitive enhancement would cause social inequality and thus widen cognitive gap between riches and poors. Fifth, if cognitive enhancement would be allowed and widely spread among our society, many people might face pressure to take cognitive enhancers for winning the competition or doing their work well. However, proponents on cognitive enhancement argue that these ethical concerns are exaggerated or will be resolved near in the future. They also argue that together with discussing cognitive enhancement, the evidence-based research on cognitive enhancement should take place and this would clearly reveal the risk and benefit of cognitive enhancers.

KEYWORDS

cognitive enhancer, safety, unnaturalness, cheating, inequality, coercion

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.

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This paper was written with support from the National Research Foundation of Korea.

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Korean Journal of Medical Ethics 2023 KCI Impact Factor : 1.21

The Ethical Debate on Cognitive Enhancement

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Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.

Korean Journal of Medical Ethics 2023 KCI Impact Factor : 1.21

The Ethical Debate on Cognitive Enhancement

ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS

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* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.