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Two Steps Forward: An African Relational Account of Moral Standing

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Abstract

This paper replies to a commentary by John-Stewart Gordon on our paper, “The Moral Standing of Social Robots: Untapped Insights from Africa.” In the original paper, we set forth an African relational view of personhood and show its implications for the moral standing of social robots. This reply clarifies our position and answers three objections. The objections concern (1) the ethical significance of intelligence, (2) the meaning of ‘pro-social,' and (3) the justification for prioritizing humans over pro-social robots.

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References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Bioethics and Humanities, University of Washington School of Medicine, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Box 357120, Seattle, Washington, 91895-7120, USA

    Nancy S. Jecker

  2. Department of Philosophy, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa

    Nancy S. Jecker

  3. Department of Philosophy and Classics, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra, Ghana

    Caesar A. Atiure & Martin Odei Ajei

  4. German Reference Center for Ethics in the Life Sciences, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany

    Martin Odei Ajei

Authors
  1. Nancy S. Jecker
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  2. Caesar A. Atiure
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  3. Martin Odei Ajei
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Contributions

Each author contributed substantially to the conception and analysis of the work; drafting or revising it critically; final approval of the version to be published; and is accountable for all aspects of the work.

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Correspondence to Nancy S. Jecker.

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Jecker, N.S., Atiure, C.A. & Ajei, M.O. Two Steps Forward: An African Relational Account of Moral Standing. Philos. Technol. 35, 38 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13347-022-00533-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13347-022-00533-3

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