Editing Neurotechnology (section)

=== Agency ===
Although the nuances of its definition are debated in [[Agency (philosophy)|philosophy]] and [[Agency (sociology)|sociology]],<ref>{{Cite book| vauthors = Wilson G, Shpall S |title=[[Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy|The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy]]|publisher=Metaphysics Research Lab, [[Stanford University]]|year=2016| veditors = Zalta EN |edition=Winter 2016|chapter=Action|chapter-url= https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2016/entries/action/}}</ref> agency is commonly understood as the individual's ability to consciously make and communicate a decision or choice. While identity and agency are distinct, an impairment in agency can in turn undermine personal identity: the subject may no longer be able to substantially modify their own self-narrative, and may therefore lose their ability to contribute to the dynamic process of identity formation.<ref name=":2" />

The interplay between agency and neurotechnology can have implications for moral responsibility and legal liability.<ref>{{Cite journal| vauthors = Haselager P |date=2013-08-01|title=Did I Do That? Brain–Computer Interfacing and the Sense of Agency|journal=Minds and Machines|language=en|volume=23|issue=3|pages=405–418|doi=10.1007/s11023-012-9298-7|s2cid=7199782|issn=1572-8641|hdl=2066/116450|hdl-access=free}}</ref><ref name=":4" /> As with identity, devices aimed at treating some psychiatric conditions like depression or anorexia may work by modulating neural function linked with desire or motivation, potentially compromising the user's agency.<ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite journal| vauthors = Goering S, Klein E, Dougherty DD, Widge AS |date=2017-04-03|title=Staying in the Loop: Relational Agency and Identity in Next-Generation DBS for Psychiatry |journal=AJOB Neuroscience|volume=8|issue=2|pages=59–70|doi=10.1080/21507740.2017.1320320|s2cid=6176406|issn=2150-7740}}</ref> This can also be the case, paradoxically, for those neurotechnologies designed to restore agency to patients, such as neural prostheses and BCI-mediated [[assistive technology]] like wheelchairs or [[computer accessibility]] tools.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Sellers EW, Vaughan TM, Wolpaw JR | title = A brain-computer interface for long-term independent home use | journal = Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis | volume = 11 | issue = 5 | pages = 449–55 | date = October 2010 | pmid = 20583947 | doi = 10.3109/17482961003777470 | s2cid = 4713118  }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Ajiboye AB, Willett FR, Young DR, Memberg WD, Murphy BA, Miller JP, Walter BL, Sweet JA, Hoyen HA, Keith MW, Peckham PH, Simeral JD, Donoghue JP, Hochberg LR, Kirsch RF | display-authors = 6 | title = Restoration of reaching and grasping movements through brain-controlled muscle stimulation in a person with tetraplegia: a proof-of-concept demonstration | journal = Lancet | volume = 389 | issue = 10081 | pages = 1821–1830 | date = May 2017 | pmid = 28363483 | pmc = 5516547 | doi = 10.1016/s0140-6736(17)30601-3}}</ref> Because these devices often operate by interpreting sensory inputs or the user's neural data in order to estimate the individual's intention and respond according to it, estimation margins can lead to inaccurate or undesired responses that may threaten agency: "If the agent's intent and the device's output can come apart (think of how the auto-correct function in texting sometimes misinterprets the user's intent and sends problematic text messages), the user's sense of agency may be undermined."<ref name=":12" />