The Mystery of Mental Integrity: Clarifying Its Relevance to Neurotechnologies

The concept of mental integrity is currently a significant topic in discussions concerning the regulation of neurotechnologies. Technologies such as deep brain stimulation and brain-computer interfaces are believed to pose a unique threat to mental integrity, and some authors have advocated for a legal right to protect it. Despite this, there remains uncertainty about what mental integrity entails and why it is important. Various interpretations of the concept have been proposed, but the literature on the subject is inconclusive. Here we consider a number of possible interpretations and argue that the most plausible one concerns neurotechnologies that bypass one's reasoning capacities, and do so specifically in ways that reliably lead to alienation from one's mental states. This narrows the scope of what constitutes a threat to mental integrity and offers a more precise role for the concept to play in the ethical evaluation of neurotechnologies.

Automated summary

The concept of mental integrity is a significant topic in discussions on the regulation of neurotechnologies. The threat posed by technologies like deep brain stimulation and brain-computer interfaces to mental integrity has led to calls for legal protection. However, there is still uncertainty about its definition and importance in the literature. This article explores various interpretations and argues that the most plausible one focuses on neurotechnologies that bypass one's reasoning capacities and lead to alienation from one's mental states.