Intention and Moral Enhancement.
Recently philosophers have proposed a wide variety of interventions referred to as 'moral enhancements'. Some of these interventions are concerned with helping individuals make more informed decisions; others, however, are designed to compel people to act as the intervener sees fit. Somewhere between these two extremes lie interventions designed to direct an agent's attention either towards morally relevant issues - hat-hanging - or away from temptations to do wrong - hat-hiding. I argue that these interventions fail to constitute genuine moral enhancement because, although they may result in more desirable outcomes - more altruism, more law-following, and/or less self-destructive behavior, they ignore a person's intentions, and often what makes an action right or wrong is the intent behind it.
simkuletwm@yahoo.com.
William
W
Simkulet
D000533:Altruism; D024803:Biomedical Enhancement / Q000941:ethics*; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D033182:Intention; D009014:Morals; D009042:Motivation
hat-hanging; hat-hiding; intention; moral bioenhancement; moral compulsion; moral enhancement; neuroenhancement