Neuroethics and criminal behavior: Philosophical perspectives on moral decision-making

This paper aims to demonstrate the importance of integrating neuroethics into the doctrine of imputation. To this end, we will proceed as follows. First, we will examine the connections between brain damage and the lack of control in agents’ moral deliberation. Second, with the aim of illustrating the main contributions of neuroethics to agents’ decision-making, we will present its relation to the doctrine of imputation. Third, we will explore the notion of imputability in relation to the psychobiological capacity to understand the characteristics of blameworthy behavior, showing that in this area neuroethics can contribute on a second-order level. Finally, in the fourth section, we will reflect—by way of conclusion—on how it may be possible to establish a bridge between neuroethics and the lack of control in agents, whether from the field of neuroscience or psychiatry.