ABSTRACT
Introduction ............................................................................................................ 107 Changing Personal Identity: Some Illustrative Cases ............................................ 108
Traumatic Insult: Phineas Gage ........................................................................ 109 Lobotomy .......................................................................................................... 109 Psychopharmacology: Sonia ............................................................................. 110 Neurotechnologies-Deep Brain Stimulation: Charles Garrison ..................... 111
Personal Identity .................................................................................................... 112 Dešning Personal Identity ..................................................................................... 113 Modišcation of Character Traits and Disruption of Personal Identity .................. 114 Preserving the Integrity of Personal Identity ......................................................... 115 Toward an Ethical Framework ............................................................................... 117 Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 120 References .............................................................................................................. 120
generates questions of how these interventions may affect personal identity. For instance, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and deep brain stimulation (DBS) have been employed for the treatment of depression, Parkinson’s disease, tremor, and chronic pain and also are known to enhance cognitive functions (Horstman 2010; Ong 2008). Neurostimulation technologies such as DBS have been shown to produce changes in demeanor and character traits in those patients undergoing the procedure (Hildt 2006). The range of effects produced by TMS and DBS foster speculation about the problem of unintended consequences, in general, and more specišcally, the ways these neurotechnologies may affect patients’ personal identity. This chapter discusses the ethical implications regarding changes to personal identity that arise from the therapeutic use of TMS and DBS technologies. In addition, we raise the question of whether changes in personal identity, as a side effect of these interventions, are ethically acceptable and whether such alterations of personality foster patients’ sense of well-being and autonomy.
