Browsing by Author "Salles, Arleen"

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    Anthropomorphism in social AIs: Some challenges
    (Elsevier Press, 2024) Wajnerman, Paz Abel; Salles, Arleen; Instituto de Éticas Aplicadas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile; Institute of Neuroethics
    In this chapter, we are concerned with anthropomorphism in social AIs, particularly social chatbots. While not embodied in terms of having a human-like appearance, these chatbots are designed to induce attribution of intentionality and agency to engage users in enhanced interactions. Here we identify and present two strategies used to address the legitimacy of the anthropomorphisation, the intentional creation of human-like traits, of AIs: ontological and pragmatic. We further review some objections to pragmatic attempts to justify the anthropomorphisation of AIs. It is not our goal to argue in favour or against anthropomorphising social chatbots. Rather we examine some persistent concerns and call for more attention to and further research and reflection on the ethical, psychological, and ontological assumptions underlying them.
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    Neuroethics and cultural context: The case of electroconvulsive therapy in Argentina
    (2023) Castelli, Paula; Guinjoan, Salvador M.; Wajnerman-Paz, Abel; Salles, Arleen
    As neuroethics continues to grow as an established discipline, it has been charged with not being sufficiently sensitive to the way in which the identification, conceptualization, and management of the ethical issues raised by neuroscience and its applications are shaped by local systems of knowledge and structures. Recently there have been calls for explicit recognition of the role played by local cultural contexts and for the development of cross-cultural methodologies that can facilitate meaningful cultural engagement. In this article, we attempt to fill this perceived gap by providing a culturally situated analysis of the practice of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in Argentina. ECT was introduced as a psychiatric treatment in Argentina in the 1930s but it is largely underutilized. While the use of ECT remains low in several countries, what makes the Argentinian case interesting is that the executive branch of government has taken a stance regarding both the scientific and moral appropriateness of ECT, recommending its prohibition. Here, we begin with a recent controversy over the use of ECT in Argentina and explain the legal recommendation to ban its application. Next, we offer an overview of some of the salient aspect of the international and local discussions on ECT. We argue that the governmental recommendation to ban the procedure should be rethought. While acknowledging the role that contexts and local conditions play in shaping the identification and assessment of the relevant ethical issues, we caution against using contextual and cultural considerations to avoid a necessary ethical debate on controversial issues.