Did you know that brothels filled with sex robots exist in the real world – not just in cheesy science fiction b-movies? These are not your granddad’s blow-up dolls. They are extremely life-like with medical-grade artificial skin that warms and lubricates, have pupils that dilate, and they can even hold a conversation. Sex robots are a growing industry with a market valuation estimated to be in the $30 billion range! In today’s GKIS article, we discuss arguments made for and against the use of sex robots as well as the ethical issues associated with them.
What is a sex robot?
A sex robot is anything that combines technology and sex for the purpose of pleasure. For this article, the term will be applied to anatomically correct, life-like androids. These androids can speak and come in all kinds of shapes, sizes, age ranges, and species, and can be made to look like whoever or whatever you want them to look like. Not only can they hold a conversation with you, but they can be programmed to simulate specific scenarios and make specific responses to actions and phrases.
If stories like these have you freaking out, imagine what your kids are reading! Start a critically-important family dialogue about screen safety and help them learn the risks of digital injury with our Social Media Readiness Course for tweens and teens. We give you the answers you are looking for and help you to avoid the quicksand in the electronic jungle!
Arguments Being Made for Sex Robots
If your mind is blown by what this might mean for the future of human society, you are not alone. Here are some arguments made that you may not have thought of yet.
The Capitalist Argument
There appears to be a niche market for sex robots. In simple terms, this means that the need for robot manufacturing would result in the creation of new jobs for people.
The Compassionate Argument
Some people have trouble finding a partner. For these people, it could be considered cruel to keep them from getting their physical and emotional needs met. Rather than leave them lonely, a robot partner may result in better life satisfaction and reduced mental illness rates.
The It’s Better than the Alternative Argument
One of the biggest arguments being made for the use of sex robots is that it could calm the urges of those who have socially abhorrent proclivities. They argue that sex robots may prevent pedophiles and rapists from harming other people or animals. There is also the argument that it could lead to less human trafficking and prostitution, thus less human suffering.
The Practice Makes Perfect Argument
With practice comes improvement in performance and increased confidence. For those filled with self-doubt or anxiety about pursuing healthy relationships, sex robots could fulfill a therapeutic need. Robot sensors and vocal feedback can provide much-need performance improvement instruction.
The All the Eggs in One Sex Robot Argument
There appears to be a population of people who are not keen on the idea of pursuing sexual relationships with other human beings. For these individuals, sex robots float their boat. If they don’t harm others, wouldn’t their private behaviors be acceptable? Some people like pepperoni on their pizza, while others like anchovies. In this case, it is just a matter of taste.
Arguments Being Made Against Sex Robots
The Operant Reinforcement Argument
The most concerning argument being made against sex robots is that providing people with androids that look like children and that have “rape settings” could increase the chance of sexual predators acting out their fantasies in real life. Sexual assault is often more about exerting dominance and power over another person than it is about sexual gratification. For these people, sex robots could reward pathological behavior and potentially increase the likelihood that people with androids harm others.
The Stereotypes and Objectification are Bad Argument
Another concerning argument of significance is that sex robots could lead to the further objectification of women and children. If one treats a robot object like a human, it’s not a far leap to then treat a human-like a robot.
The Population Decimation Argument
Some people say that this will lead to a sharp decrease in the human population due to a decline in pregnancy rates caused by a wide acceptance of sex robots.
The Social Isolation Argument
There is a valid argument that more time spent alone with technology could socially isolate people and further harm those who are suffering from psychological issues, such as depression, stemming from a lack of human contact.
The Use It or Lose It Argument
Some people argue that people will stop having sex with other people if sex robots become socially acceptable. After all, true intimacy is not about subservience and always being ready to be acted upon without having to give consent. Once we quit practicing relationship behaviors that lead to a mutual sharing and vulnerability that help us grow as emotional human beings, we may forget how to do it. Human beings are adaptable. By not having to do the hard things like express emotion, tolerate inconvenience and distress, and get consent for sexual advance, those skills may erode and leave us deficient in our very humanness. Not only may we treat others like robots, but we may become more robotic ourselves.
Ethics
Taking into account the arguments above, what do you think? Is interacting with sex robots right or wrong?
Because it is unlikely that legislators will be able to outlaw sex robots in favor of American civil rights, perhaps we should consider how robot manufacture, purchase, and use should be regulated. The UK already implemented a law forbidding child sex robots. By becoming informed and forming well-thought-out opinions and evidenced arguments, we are all best equipped to protect our families and ourselves. As our world becomes more and more technologically integrated, we will need to ask hard questions and adapt.
How to Stay Informed
Dr. B is in a unique position to help you to learn more about the potential dangers that your family could face when engaging with technology. She can help you to navigate safely throughout your journey as a practicing psychologist, university professor, and mother. You can download the free GKIS Connected Family Agreement simply by creating a GKIS account on our website home page. In Dr. B’s book, Screen Time in the Mean Time, she discusses and attacks the issue of raising a family while safely integrating technology rather than fearing it. Also, our Screen Safety Essentials Course provides useful tips about how to make the internet a safer place for your family, parenting and family coaching information, support, and other valuable information. It is our one-stop shop with fun teaching materials for parents and the whole family!
Thanks to CSUCI intern, Michael Watson for researching the ethical and economic arguments for and against sex robots.
I’m the mom psychologist who will help you GetKidsInternetSafe.
Did you know that the FDA has given the go-ahead for companies to turn human test subjects into cyborgs? Advancements in the tech industry are being made at an alarming rate, giving rise to difficult ethical issues, especially in the medical field. Currently, there is a race to develop brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) for a multitude of purposes. In today’s GKIS article, we discuss the possible benefits, risks, and ethical issues associated with developing such devices. If you are unsure of how to protect your tweens and teens growing reliance on technology and obsession with online presence, Dr. Bennett’s Social Media Readiness Online Course will give you the answers you are looking for and help you to navigate through these ever-changing waters!
What is a brain-computer interface?
A brain-computer interface (BCI) is a technological device that directly interacts with the brain with no noticeable lag time. These devices read the electrochemical signals of the brain and translate them to carry out a desired action. This action can be anything from moving a prosthetic limb to telepathic communication. The goal of these devices is to bypass the body’s natural pathways using technology. Up until recently, this was merely the stuff of science fiction fantasy, and comic books. Yet, with advances in processing speed and data storage, it’s become a reality.
Neuralink
Neuralink is a company created by Tesla founder and carnival showman, Elon Musk. The goal of this company is specifically to create BCIs. The current BCI that Neuralink is working on consists of a computer chip the size of a coin connected to extremely thin wires. The chip will be surgically implanted into the skull with the wires being inserted directly into the brain.
The original stated purpose of this company was the altruistic goal of helping disabled individuals regain lost function of limbs and mobility. Yet more recently, Elon Musk stated that the goal is “human enhancement.” In interviews, such as on Joe Rogan’s podcast, he spoke of telepathic communication and thinking capabilities to rival computer artificial intelligence (AI). Neuralink has been given FDA approval to start the human trial phase and is looking to begin drilling holes in test-subjects heads sometime this year.
Synchron
Synchron is a much smaller company based in New York with a similar purpose of developing BCIs. Synchron’s flagship BCI, the Stentrode implant, is inserted through a vein and guided into the brain. Synchron has already successfully conducted clinical trials in Australia, inserting these devices into four human subjects suffering from severe paralysis. They have also been given FDA approval to begin human trials in the United States, which will take place at Mount Sinai Hospital and involve six subjects.
Though Sychron’s current goal is to allow disabled people to control digital devices with their brains and to improve their functional independence, their ultimate stated goal is to achieve whole-brain data transfer. What that means is they want to be able to transfer a human into a digital world.
Possible Benefits of BCIs
Improving the lives of disabled individuals
Faster access to information
Telepathic communication
Virtual immortality
Possible Risks of BCIs
The exploitation of individuals with disabilities
Risky surgery
Disability or death
A wider gap between the abilities of the wealthy and the poor
Literal brain hacking
Forever altering what it means to be human
Possible Ethical Issues of BCIs
Tech to BioTech
The biggest issue with BCIs requires a discussion in ethics. When it comes to ethical questions, we are in a truly unique situation. We have multi-million-dollar for-profit tech companies entering the medical field with end goals that are not medical in nature. Is it ethical for a tech company to perform risky experiments on individuals with disabilities when the end goal is profit and ultimately may not benefit the group initially being tested upon?
It could be argued that the initial experiments will benefit disabled subjects, which is ethically sound. Yet, several ethicists have concerns that the ultimate goal of this research is for commercial means, such as using the technology to be implemented into Tesla automobiles, rather than being purely medical in nature.[1]Others have pointed out that this could be considered exploitative due to the potential for commercial gains in other areas of business.
Pain and Suffering
Recently, news broke that 15 of the 23 monkey test subjects that had the Neuralink chip implanted in their brains at UC Davis died horrible deaths.[2] Since this news broke, UC Davis has been trying to distance itself from Neuralink. The surgical device that Neuralink created to perform the surgery is currently not approved for human trials since it is not okay to put humans through a medical trial where they are more likely to die or suffer from debilitating side effects than to receive any benefits.
The Opportunity Gap
Another ethical issue revolves around the potential societal effects if everything works out according to plan. There is already a huge gap between the haves and the have-nots, those with power and those without. What would happen if one could pay to be smarter, faster, and stronger? The opportunity gap would become insurmountable!
Privacy and Cybercrime
There is also the issue of privacy. All technology that can access the internet can be accessed by others. The most advanced encryption and security safeguards eventually become obsolete as technological advances are made that allow people to bypass them. Imagine if every thought or memory could be hacked and stolen from you. An entire person’s being could be manipulated, altered, or even held for ransom. Cybercrime is already an issue when it comes to ransomware, identity theft, and phishing scams. Think about the new problems that would arise if people’s brains were connected to the internet!
Technology Weaponized
For every technological achievement, there is always someone who will use it for evil. BCIs could eventually be used for military applications. Powerful organizations could utilize this technology to create heavily modified super soldiers. The possibilities become endless when physical and mental enhancement is on the table.
I know this sounds crazy, like something out of a comic book. Yet, flying cars are currently being tested for manufacture by multiple auto companies. Thirty years ago, no one could have imagined where we would be today from a technological standpoint. As computer chips become smaller and more powerful, there is no telling where we will be by 2050. The question is now whether something should be possible rather than if it could be possible.
Staying Informed
Dr. B is in a unique position to help you to learn more about the potential dangers that your family could face when engaging with technology. She can help you to navigate safely throughout your journey as a practicing psychologist, university professor, and mother.
In Dr. B’s book, Screen Time in the Mean Time, she discusses and attacks the issue of raising a family while safely integrating technology rather than fearing it. Also, you can download the free GKIS Connected Family Agreement simply by creating a GKIS account on our website home page. If you are looking for our most comprehensive toolkit to achieve screen safety and family cooperation, our Screen Safety Essentials Course offers useful tips about how to make the internet a safer place for your family with weekly parenting and family coaching videos, important teaching materials and infographics, webinars, articles, and other valuable information.
Thanks to CSUCI intern, Michael Watson for researching brain-computer interfaces and the potential bioethical issues surrounding them.
I’m the mom psychologist who will help you GetKidsInternetSafe.
