THE CONSEQUENCES OF COGNITIVE AUGMENTATION: CONSIDERING BRAIN-COMPUTER INTERFACE (BCI) TECHNOLOGY AND VULNERABLE POPULATIONS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES (ID)

Abstract

This paper discusses the implications of incorporating Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) technology into vulnerable populations with Intellectual Disabilities (ID).  Although this technology is not currently widespread, the paper postulates that there could be a rapid increase in these surgeries in the future.  Based on this assumption, the content is entirely scenario-based and offers various possibilities.  The author is encouraging a preventative discussion surrounding the topic of elective BCI implantation in people with ID.  The paper provides several central concerns about this technology. The first and most important is informed consent: many individuals in this population may lack the cognitive capacity to fully comprehend the profound, long-term implications of this surgical procedure. The paper also addresses that the decision to undergo a neurological modification—a procedure popularized by companies like Neuralink—will often be made by parents or guardians and not youth with extreme intellectual disabilities, and the paper argues against this.  Another contested area surrounding this presumed elective surgery is the ownership of the human soul and the concern that unnecessary surgical intervention could usurp its divine ownership.  Other considerations in this document include the widespread adoption of BCI, which could lead to a surge in demand and a surgical waiting list, despite a lack of thorough analysis and critique of its risks. This paper aims to spur a critical conversation about why implementing BCI technology in vulnerable populations warrants extreme caution. By exploring these moral dimensions, this writing contends that BCI technology poses profound, long-term consequences that must be fully considered to prevent widespread implementation in the intellectually vulnerable populations of the world.