Neuroethics 6 (3):527-539 (2013)
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Abstract |
Deep brain stimulation is a well-accepted treatment for movement disorders and is currently explored as a treatment option for various neurological and psychiatric disorders. Several case studies suggest that DBS may, in some patients, influence mental states critical to personality to such an extent that it affects an individual’s personal identity, i.e. the experience of psychological continuity, of persisting through time as the same person. Without questioning the usefulness of DBS as a treatment option for various serious and treatment refractory conditions, the potential of disruptions of psychological continuity raises a number of ethical and legal questions. An important question is that of legal responsibility if DBS induced changes in a patient’s personality result in damage caused by undesirable or even deviant behavior. Disruptions in psychological continuity can in some cases also have an effect on an individual’s mental competence. This capacity is necessary in order to obtain informed consent to start, continue or stop treatment, and it is therefore not only important from an ethical point of view but also has legal consequences. Taking the existing literature and the Dutch legal system as a starting point, the present paper discusses the implications of DBS induced disruptions in psychological continuity for a patient’s responsibility for action and competence of decision and raises a number of questions that need further research
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Keywords | Deep brain stimulation Personal identity Psychological continuity Responsibility for action Mental competence |
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DOI | 10.1007/s12152-010-9093-1 |
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References found in this work BETA
An Essay Concerning Human Understanding.John Locke - 1689 - London, England: Oxford University Press.
Reasons and Persons.Joseph Margolis - 1986 - Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 47 (2):311-327.
View all 22 references / Add more references
Citations of this work BETA
I Miss Being Me: Phenomenological Effects of Deep Brain Stimulation.Frederic Gilbert, Eliza Goddard, John Noel M. Viaña, Adrian Carter & Malcolm Horne - 2017 - American Journal of Bioethics Neuroscience 8 (2):96-109.
Deflating the “DBS Causes Personality Changes” Bubble.Frederic Gilbert, J. N. M. Viaña & C. Ineichen - 2018 - Neuroethics 14 (Suppl 1):1-17.
Me, Myself and My Brain Implant: Deep Brain Stimulation Raises Questions of Personal Authenticity and Alienation.Felicitas Kraemer - 2013 - Neuroethics 6 (3):483-497.
Personal Identity, Direction of Change, and Neuroethics.Kevin Tobia - 2016 - Neuroethics 9 (1):37-43.
Moral Enhancement: Do Means Matter Morally?Farah Focquaert & Maartje Schermer - 2015 - Neuroethics 8 (2):139-151.
View all 45 citations / Add more citations
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