Somatosensory Feedback in BCIs: Why Aiming for Naturalness Raises Ethical Concerns.

Abstract

Recent developments in the domain of bi-directional Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) technology are directed at generating naturalistic sensory perceptual experiences for disabled people. I argue that conceptualizing and operationalizing "naturalness" in this context has profound impact on disabled people and their experiences. I ask (1) what does it mean to have a "natural" perceptual experience and (2) should the bi-directional BCI-community strive for naturalness in this context? Inspired by phenomenological and 4E-cognition approaches to perception, I argue that the terms "natural" and "naturalness" should not be used in this context because of (1) polysemicity and (2) an implicit bias favoring able-bodied perception over disabled perception. I offer the phenomenological concept of transparency as a positive alternative to denote the underlying goal of embodiment and effortless use. I cash out methodological ramifications of my argument for research in bi-directional BCIs and plea for a transdisciplinary dialogue between end-users, phenomenologists and neuroscientists.