The Moral Consideration of Artificial Entities: A Literature Review

TL;DR

This literature review synthesizes research on whether artificial entities like robots should be granted moral consideration, highlighting ethical debates, frameworks, and the need for more empirical social science studies.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive synthesis of 294 research items on moral consideration of artificial entities and identifies gaps in empirical data and ethical frameworks.

Findings

Widespread agreement on potential moral consideration for artificial entities

Various ethical frameworks discussed, including information ethics and social-relational approaches

Limited empirical data, mainly psychological studies on human attitudes towards robots

Abstract

Ethicists, policy-makers, and the general public have questioned whether artificial entities such as robots warrant rights or other forms of moral consideration. There is little synthesis of the research on this topic so far. We identify 294 relevant research or discussion items in our literature review of this topic. There is widespread agreement among scholars that some artificial entities could warrant moral consideration in the future, if not also the present. The reasoning varies, such as concern for the effects on artificial entities and concern for the effects on human society. Beyond the conventional consequentialist, deontological, and virtue ethicist ethical frameworks, some scholars encourage "information ethics" and "social-relational" approaches, though there are opportunities for more in-depth ethical research on the nuances of moral consideration of artificial entities. There is limited relevant empirical data collection, primarily in a few psychological studies on current moral and social attitudes of humans towards robots and other artificial entities. This suggests an important gap for social science research on how artificial entities will be integrated into society and the factors that will determine how the interests of sentient artificial entities are considered.