The course will be concerned with issues at the intersection of neuroscience and philosophical ethics, comprising what has come to be known as Neuroethics. The course will be divided into two main sections. In the first half, we will deal with matters concerning what can be called the ethics of neuroscience: we will discuss a number of ethical questions that arise within and as a consequence of advances in neuroscience, like whether it is morally permissible to improve people’s physical, cognitive and moral abilities through neuroenhancement. Going beyond questions of applied ethics, we will, secondly, take a closer look at what may be called the neuroscience of ethics, exploring potential implications of neuroscientific findings for a number of issues within moral philosophy. Among other things, we will discuss the relevance of neuroscientific discoveries for debates about free will and moral responsibility, both in general as well as in particular cases such as that of severe addiction. We shall also discuss which, if any, conclusions can be drawn from functional neuroimaging studies about the nature of moral thought. Finally, the course will offer plenty of opportunities to exercise and improve a number of key methodological competences required for serious research in the area of philosophical ethics.
Introductory Literature:
Farah, Martha J. (2002), Emerging Ethical Issues in Neuroscience, Nature Neuroscience, 5: 1123-1129. Roskies, A.L. (2002), Neuroethics for the New Millenium, Neuron, 35:21-23. Levy, N. (2012), Neuroethics. WIREs Cogn Sci, 3: 143–151.
