The ethics of neuroscience in psychology are critical to successful and applicable research. Every psychologist and neuroscientist will ask whether an area of research is ethical before beginning a project.
Neuroscience is a complex field of study that deals with the nervous system. When conducting research in this area, neuroscientists must weigh how ethical their studies are and whether they can continue their studies without compromising the rights of their participants. The venture of knowledge needs to operate within the constraints of human rights.
- We are going to explore the world of ethics in neuroscience. First, we will provide an overview of the ethics of the neuroscience debate.
- We will establish the ethics of neuroscience in psychology, outlining the main ethical issues to consider when exploring new areas of knowledge.
- We will then go on to discuss the various ethical benefits of the use of neuroscience in psychology, including treatment using neuroscience and how neurological imaging has influenced our understanding of the brain.
- Finally, we will discuss the ethical problems of using neuroscience in psychology and the social and economic issues in the ethical uses of neuroscience.
Fig 1. - Neuroscience examines the brain and the rest of the nervous system.
The Ethics of Neuroscience Debate
The debate over the ethics of neuroscience is one of the most topical debates out there. When you decide to study an area of the human body (especially the brain), the big dilemma is asking yourself whether the information you want to gain is worth the potential burden you are putting on the person or animal you are studying.In addition, as research techniques and modern technology advance, there is the question of what to do with this new information. Will the insight into the nervous system’s workings be used to enhance research into more insidious plans? Or will it be used from a purely medical perspective?
According to the APA Dictionary¹, ethics in psychology is defined as:
The principles of morally right conduct accepted by a person or a group or considered appropriate to a specific field. In psychological research, for example, proper ethics requires that participants be treated fairly and without harm and that investigators report results and findings honestly.
The Areas of Ethics in Neuroscience
Overall, there are several important areas we focus on when addressing the ethical debate in neuroscience, as these areas are generally prioritised:
Research (sample selection, animal rights, diseases in research)
Therapy (psychosurgery and personal identity, criminal behaviour)
Why there is a debate at all (concepts such as eugenics, moral responsibility, and free will)
Related theories (cognitive and biological theories, including the concept of free will.
In psychology, researchers have to consider the following ethical issues:
- Informed consent
- Voluntary participation
- Protection of the participants
- Confidentiality
- Anonymity
- The right to withdraw
- Debriefing
Olds and Milner (1954): The Skinner Box
In 1954, Olds and Milner² modified the famous Skinner box to study the brain’s pleasure centre. What they found had a profound impact on all of neuroscience.To begin the experiment, they attached electrodes to specific brain areas in rats. They studied the septal area, which is suggested to be a reliable area in producing reward phenomena in the brain. The rats were then placed in the Skinner box with the electrodes attached and levers.
One lever allowed the rats to stimulate the areas of the brain where the electrodes were attached. Each time they pressed it, it produced a pleasant, reward-like sensation in the brain. One rat (the highest scoring rat) was found to self-stimulate over 7500 times in 12 hours.
Further studies found that when given a choice between pressing the lever and eating, drinking, and caring for their young, the rats chose the pleasurable sensation of pressing the lever.
Fig. 2 - Rats were used in various famous experiments in neuroscience and psychology.
Problems arose when this experiment was performed on human patients. These were usually patients. Researchers used the use of electrodes to stimulate regions of the brain to see if certain diseases could be cured.
For example, some neuroscientists believed electrode brain stimulation could help cure depression and anxiety, which seems fruitful and useful.
However, it was also used for more sadistic ‘treatments for illnesses’ (which, unfortunately, also applied to cases of homosexuality).
Ethical Benefits of Using Neuroscience in Psychology
The ethical benefits of using neuroscience in psychology include advancing treatment techniques, rehabilitating offenders, and other areas involving neuroscience. Neuroscience has proven particularly useful for biological therapies.
Rehabilitation of Offenders
Biological psychology holds that genes and biological predispositions influence criminal behaviour. People are predisposed or prone to commit crimes because it is in their biology, including neural and hormonal mechanisms.
One aspect of this branch is the role of neurotransmitters (chemical messengers). Consider the role of serotonin in the brain.
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that helps stabilise mood (i.e., whether you feel happy, sad, angry, etc.) and helps in areas such as sleep. Some consider it the happiness hormone, affecting how good you feel.
Cherek et al. (2002) examined the role of serotonin in human aggression in 12 male subjects with criminal histories. Six subjects received a placebo, and six received paroxetine, an antidepressant.
- Aggression was measured using the point-subtraction aggression paradigm (PSAP). They measured impulsivity using a reward system; those who could wait longer received better rewards.
They found that after 21 days of paroxetine administration, impulsive responses decreased, and toward the end of treatment, so did aggression. They concluded that paroxetine’s inhibition of serotonin lowers aggression levels and can be used as a treatment to reduce aggression in general.
The study raises the question of whether we can offer pharmacological treatment to criminals to reduce their impulsive behaviour and thereby lower crime rates. This treatment would benefit society as a whole and make neuroscience more ethical.
Brain Abnormalities in Murderers
A particularly important study is that of Raine et al. (1997).They examined the potential brain abnormalities of 41 murderers who pleaded not guilty to murder by insanity. They used positron emission tomography techniques to analyse brain structure.They found murderers were characterised by reduced glucose metabolism in their:
- Prefrontal cortex
- Superior parietal gyrus
- Left angular gyrus
- Corpus callosum
They also found asymmetrical activity levels in the amygdala, thalamus and medial temporal lobe. They then suggested abnormalities in these areas might predispose people to murder.
If this is the case, we can identify potential murderers before they even commit murder. But is it fair to convict someone before they have ever committed a crime just because they are expected to do so based on these studies?
Treatment Using Neuroscience
We have developed various methods of treating abnormal behaviour and mental disorders thanks to neuroscience research results.
One of the most prominent examples is the introduction of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). These are antidepressants used to treat mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
SSRIs are useful with significant effects on those who undergo treatment. Addressing these problems makes neuroscience more ethical and provides ethical benefits through the use of neuroscience in psychology.
Fig. 3 - SSRI drugs are used in neuroscience treatment.
As we understand more and more about the localisation of brain function, a treatment called deep brain stimulation (DBS) has also been used primarily for obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Understanding Consciousness
For a long time, many people have been trying to understand the phenomena of consciousness.
Crick and Koch (1998) argued that the science of consciousness should be based on the fundamentals of identifying its neural correlates, also suggesting that consciousness provides useful biological stimuli that help with survival.
Visual consciousness, for example, allows us to experience, interpret, and think about visual events.
Koubeissi et al. (2014) investigated the roots of consciousness in their study of a 54-year-old woman with intractable epilepsy who was treated with electrode implantation and stimulation mapping.
Consciousness was disrupted when the electrode stimulated and disrupted function between the left claustrum and the anterior-dorsal insula.
The claustrum is a sheet of neurones in the middle of the brain.
In this research, stimulation of the claustrum electrode caused:
This disturbance did not persist after the stimulation was stopped. The researchers concluded the claustrum is an important area associated with consciousness, and it can be disrupted.
With this knowledge, we can approach different areas of the brain with a better idea of how they function. Those who have problems with consciousness can then receive better-informed care.
People who are in a persistent vegetative state (PVS) are recognised as dead by law (at least in the US). Recent research suggests using such a term is considered unethical. Instead, physicians now prefer to use the term ‘unresponsive waking state syndrome’ because there is an ethical debate about whether the vegetative state is entirely accurate and whether we can treat it.We can also use neuroscience research to understand whether the person in PVS is conscious fully, and if not, make a better decision about whether we should let them die through medical intervention.
Enhance Neurological Functioning
Neuroscience research can enhance our neurological function, which can be seen in the Kadosh et al. (2012) study.
They used transcranial direct stimulation (TDCS) that passes an electrical current through the brain (and this can be directed by placing the electrodes on specific areas). When placed in certain areas, problem-solving skills, mathematical skills, and language skills all improved.
This finding demonstrates a way to enhance the neurological functioning of human beings using neuroscience.
Fig. 4 - Neuroscience research can enhance our neurological function.
Ethical Problems of Using Neuroscience in Psychology
Although the ethical benefits from the use of neuroscience in psychology are evident, there are also issues, which we have touched upon with the points made above.
Neuroscience in Crime and Punishment
Considering the study on the brains of murderers by Raine et al. (1997), basing a judicial system on preliminary information raises ethical concerns.
Should we remove these people with abnormal brain structures from society to prevent potential murders? Is it ethical to treat them before they have done anything wrong?
Farah (2004) highlights the issue of basing our judicial system on neuroscience, correctly pointing out that personal freedom is one of the first basic human rights, and infringing upon that with neuroscience to alter ‘innate’ behaviours raises genuine concerns.
It is unethical to force people into treatments that will change their behaviours, especially considering prisoners are technically vulnerable people when imprisoned. Moral questions surrounding the responsibility of offender care and the reliability of research findings arise.
Issues with treatment using neuroscience
Although the advent of SSRIs has proven effective in treatment, alongside other techniques, there are side effects we cannot ignore when using these treatment plans.
Some side effects include memory and speech issues, suicidal ideation plus physical sicknesses such as headache and fatigue.
Those with depression taking antidepressants have been reported to commit suicide at a higher rate after initially starting treatment (Ferguson et al., 2005).
Treatments have also been misused. Homosexuality was previously believed to be a mental disorder (sexual deviation), and lobotomies, electrical stimulation, and chemical castration were all avenues of possible ‘treatment’ plans to cure it.
Kadosh et al. (2012) point out that there are currently no restrictions on who can use the TDCS. As a result, improperly trained practitioners could offer TDCS as a treatment that could be dangerous if not used in a proper way or in unsuitable brain areas.
Social and Economic issues in ethical uses of neuroscience
As neuroscience is a rapidly developing area of study, it has made significant advancements in research techniques.
Neuroscience research has evolved from identifying brain structures from corpses to the development of imaging techniques (such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRIs) and computerised tomography (CT) scans).
An even newer development is the production of brain organoids. Which are stem cells used to produce brain structures to be studied outside of the body; they are artificially grown. However, the implantation of these organoids raises ethical concerns. We could technically implant a human brain organoid into a dog, and see how the dog deals with this.
There are also issues with neuromarketing. When companies analyse our online browsing preferences and behaviour to create an 'image' of who we are. This then allows advertisements to be directed at specific people using different techniques to influence purchasing decisions.
This raises people's concerns surrounding ethics of privacy and questions about how far neuroscientific techniques in analysing patterns and human consciousness should go.
Consider a study by Nelson (2008), where they found that the use of MRI scans to investigate brain function used by economic firms has risen in recent years. There have been incidental findings (findings of medical conditions discovered unintentionally). Yet, these are not properly addressed – 5% of brain scans used by these firms found evidence of brain tumours and other problems. Researchers are then not obliged to inform participants about this – they do not have to follow ethical guidelines, as they are not medical professionals.
However, how much money can effectively treat disorders such as depression save is something to consider. Thomas and Morris (2003) found that the cost of depression amongst adults in England in 2000 was around £9 billion. 109.7 million working days were lost, and 2,615 deaths were recorded due to depression. It would be ethically correct to treat these disorders.
However, looking at mental health issues from a monetary angle poses its issues. Can you really cap the cost of improving people's lives? Should technology be regulated differently to only be used for certain purposes?
Ethics of Neuroscience - Key takeaways
- The ethics of neuroscience debate poses the ethical benefits of using neuroscience in psychology (including rehabilitating offenders, improving treatment techniques, and understanding consciousness).
- It raises ethical concerns (pre-emptive incarceration or treatment of potential criminals based on previous findings on abnormal brain structures, infringement of human rights through forced treatment to alter innate behaviours, and the side effects of treatments).
- Areas we tend to focus on when concerning ethics of neuroscience are research (sample selection, animal rights, diseases in research), therapy (psychosurgery and personal identity, criminal behaviour), why there is a debate at all (concepts such as eugenics, moral responsibility, and free will), and related theories (cognitive and biological theories, including the concept of free will.
Ethical benefits of using neuroscience in psychology include the rehabilitation of offenders, the treatment of mental health disorders, and its role in increasing understanding of how the brain works. Studies have identified where the seat of consciousness may lie (Koubeissi et al., 2014). We can also improve neurological functioning with neuroscience.
The socioeconomic benefits include better treatment plans and less crime in society; however, looking at the brain and human nature through monetary value raises concerns.
1. G.R. VandenBos, APA dictionary of psychology. American Psychological Association, 2007
2. J. Olds & P. Milner, Positive reinforcement produced by electrical stimulation of septal area and other regions of rat brain. Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology, 47(6), 419–427., 1954
Explanations 
Exams 
Magazine 
