Ethics of Human Enhancement Technologies (HET) in Military Operations: Re-thinking Responsibility

Abstract

Title: Ethics of Human Enhancement Technologies (HET) in military operations: Rethinking Responsibility

Abstract: Military operations are becoming increasingly complex and technologically advanced, a trend that is expected to change the character of future warfare. The integration of advanced technologies will not only redefine operational paradigms but also impose greater demands on the human soldier. Technologically advanced militaries are currently investing in research and development to explore new ways to enhance soldiers' performance. For example, in April 2024, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) announced the release of its first Biotechnology and Human Enhancement Technologies Strategy, which detailed NATO's view that Human Enhancement Technologies (HET) represent an important category of emerging technologies, presenting both opportunities and risks for NATO and its allies.

This emphasis on HET reflects a shift towards a human-centric approach to warfare, where the individual soldier is to be armed with the capability to fully integrate into a single platform: the human platform. Militaries in the United States, the United Kingdom, and other NATO countries have adopted the concept of the human platform into their warfighting concepts and doctrines, highlighting the importance of human capability in future warfare. The capabilities of interest are those that enable the soldier to meet the demands of increasingly complex operational environments that potentially require soldiers to perform well beyond their current physiological and cognitive abilities.

Current HET research and development spans from Pharmacological Cognitive Enhancement (PCE) and biotechnologies to sophisticated neurotechnologies, such as Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) and Brain-to-Brain Interfaces (BBIs). When fully developed, these technologies promise to enhance soldiers' physiological and cognitive capabilities, such as enhancing decision-making, task performance and memory functioning, suppressing fear and anxiety, and eliminating cognitive fatigue. However, alongside the operational benefits they promise, HET raise complex ethical questions, one of which concerns the attribution of moral responsibility. This thesis addresses the following research question: how do HET impact the ways in which moral responsibility is attributed to the enhanced soldier? To answer this question, this thesis examines how HET could impact four conditions that are necessary to attribute responsibility: autonomy, capacity, agency, and control. This thesis demonstrates that, in certain contexts, HET could impact these conditions and, in doing so, challenge established practices for attributing moral responsibility.

This thesis applies an ethical foresight analysis (EFA) method, situated within the foresight analysis or future studies discipline. To support this approach, tools such as techno-ethical scenarios are utilised to examine potential applications of HET. This thesis aims to address a gap in the literature by focusing on the implications of emerging military technologies for individual soldiers. The findings will contribute to the broader disciplines of military ethics and the ethics of emerging technologies.