RT Article
T1 How moral bioenhancement affects perceived praiseworthiness
JF Bioethics
VO 38
IS 2
SP 129
OP 137
A1 Lucas, Simon
A1 Douglas, Thomas
A1 Faber, Nadira S.
LA English
PB Wiley-Blackwell
YR 2024
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/1878042939
AB Psychological literature indicates that actions performed with the assistance of cognition-enhancing biomedical technologies are often deemed to be less praiseworthy than similar actions performed without such assistance. This study examines (i) whether this result extends to the bioenhancement of moral capacities, and (ii) if so, what explains the effect of moral bioenhancement on perceived praiseworthiness. The findings indicate that actions facilitated by morally bioenhanced individuals are considered less deserving of praise than similar actions facilitated by ‘traditional’ moral enhancement—for example, moral self-education. This diminished praise does not seem to be driven by an aversion to (moral) bioenhancement per se. Instead, it appears to be primarily attributable to a perceived lack of effort exerted by bioenhanced individuals in the course of their moral enhancement. Our findings advance the philosophical discourse on the foundations of praise in the context of moral bioenhancement by elucidating the empirical basis underlying some assumptions commonly employed to argue for or against the permissibility of moral bioenhancement.
K1 praiseworthiness
K1 moral bioenhancement
K1 experimental bioethics
K1 effort
K1 Desert
DO 10.1111/bioe.13237