Guest Editorial: Neuroethics—From Neurotechnology to Healthcare

Extract

In proportion to other serious illnesses, diseases of the brain and mind represent the greatest—and still increasing—public health burden that Western societies are facing. Consequently, scientists, governments, advocacy groups, and public health authorities are committed to research to tackle the causes and consequences of neurological and psychiatric diseases and to find cures for them. As neuroscience research progresses, ethicists and neuroscientists face numerous ethical challenges to the integration of frontier application of research—neurotechnology—with the delivery of high-quality healthcare. In this special neuroethics issue, we have invited distinguished scholars with diverse disciplinary backgrounds to present their reflections and research on the ethical dimensions of this crucial integration.