{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,23]],"date-time":"2026-03-23T22:52:23Z","timestamp":1774306343166,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":24,"publisher":"Springer Science and Business Media LLC","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,19]],"date-time":"2025-03-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1742342400000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,19]],"date-time":"2025-03-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1742342400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"}],"funder":[{"name":"FOM Hochschule f\u00fcr Oekonomie und Management gGmbH"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["link.springer.com"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["AI Ethics"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2025,8]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n          <jats:p>Since the Second World War, dignity has been the central concept for defining the indestructible intrinsic value of human beings. With the advent of ever-improving AI, the question is becoming urgent whether robots, computers, or other intelligent machines should be granted dignity and thus rights. Previous answers in the literature vary widely, ranging from the opinion that robots are mere things with no intrinsic value to the complete opposite\u2014the demand that they be granted human rights. The reason for this disagreement is that experts in computer ethics use different conceptualizations of dignity. The aim of this article is to clarify the concept of dignity for computer ethics. Systematic literature research was carried out with a focus on very fundamental works on the concept of dignity. From this, components of human dignity were derived. All conceivable relevant components are listed and tested for applicability to robots or computers. <jats:underline>Human<\/jats:underline> dignity is based on a closed list of characteristics, including freedom and autonomy for moral responsibility (which includes consciousness and appropriate reactions), the capacity for suffering and respect, dignified behavior, individuality, and a few others. It is possible to apply them to robots, and if a robot has all these components, it is hard to see why he should not be granted dignity. Future discussions about the dignity of robots, computers and other intelligent machines will gain precision if they use a common, precise concept of dignity. An open question is what happens if machines have some but not all of the components of dignity.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1007\/s43681-025-00693-w","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,19]],"date-time":"2025-03-19T18:50:24Z","timestamp":1742410224000},"page":"4061-4067","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Dignity as a concept for computer ethics"],"prefix":"10.1007","volume":"5","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9987-7325","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Christian","family":"Thielscher","sequence":"first","affiliation":[]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"693_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Ashrafian, H.: Intelligent robots must uphold human rights. Nature 519, 391 (2015). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1038\/519391a","DOI":"10.1038\/519391a"},{"key":"693_CR2","unstructured":"Baldus M. K\u00e4mpfe um die Menschenw\u00fcrde. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt 2016"},{"key":"693_CR3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Bryson, J., Diamantis, M., Grant, T.: Of, for, and by the people: the legal lacuna of synthetic persons. Artif. Intell. Law 25, 273\u2013291 (2017). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s10506-017-9214-9","DOI":"10.1007\/s10506-017-9214-9"},{"key":"693_CR4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Coeckelbergh, M.: How to use virtue ethics for thinking about the moral standing of social robots: a relational interpretation in terms of practices, habits, and performance. Int J of Soc Robotics 13, 31\u201340 (2021). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s12369-020-00707-z","DOI":"10.1007\/s12369-020-00707-z"},{"key":"693_CR5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"De Pagter, J.: Speculating about robot moral standing: on the constitution of social robots as objects of governance. Front Robot AI. 2(8), 769349 (2021). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/frobt.2021.769349","DOI":"10.3389\/frobt.2021.769349"},{"key":"693_CR6","unstructured":"Debus, T., et al.: Hg. Wochenschau Verlag, Schwalbach, Philosophie der Menschenw\u00fcrde (2010)"},{"key":"693_CR7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Furlanis, T., Kanda, T., Br\u0161\u010di\u0107, D.: Robots as moral environments. AI & Soc. 39, 1749\u20131767 (2024). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s00146-023-01656-7","DOI":"10.1007\/s00146-023-01656-7"},{"key":"693_CR8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Gogoshin, D.L.: Robot responsibility and moral community. Front Robot AI. 22(8), 768092 (2021). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/frobt.2021.768092","DOI":"10.3389\/frobt.2021.768092"},{"key":"693_CR9","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Gordon, J.S., Pasvenskiene, A.: Human rights for robots? A literature review. AI Ethics 1, 579\u2013591 (2021). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s43681-021-00050-7","DOI":"10.1007\/s43681-021-00050-7"},{"key":"693_CR10","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Gunkel, D.J.: The other question: can and should robots have rights? Ethics Inf. Technol. 20, 87\u201399 (2018). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/s10676-017-9442-4","DOI":"10.1007\/s10676-017-9442-4"},{"key":"693_CR11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Habermas, J.: Das Konzept der Menschenw\u00fcrde und die realistische Utopie der Menschenrechte. DZPhil 58(3), 343\u2013357 (2010)","DOI":"10.1524\/dzph.2010.58.3.343"},{"key":"693_CR12","unstructured":"Hicks, D.: Dignity. Yale University Press, New Haven and London (2011)"},{"key":"693_CR13","unstructured":"Kateb, G.: Human Dignity. Harvard University Press, Cambridge (2011)"},{"key":"693_CR14","unstructured":"Lauterbach, K.: Menschenw\u00fcrde. Nomos, Baden-Baden (2022)"},{"key":"693_CR15","unstructured":"Linares, J. M. A., Atienza, M. (ed). Human Dignity and the Autonomy of Law. Springer Nature, Cham (2022)"},{"key":"693_CR16","unstructured":"L\u00fcbbe, W.: Nonaggregationismus: Grundlagen der Allokationsethik. Mentis, Paderborn (2015)"},{"key":"693_CR17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Macklin, R.: Dignity is a useless concept: it means no more than respect for persons or their autonomy. Br. Med. J. 327(7249), 1419\u20131420 (2003)","DOI":"10.1136\/bmj.327.7429.1419"},{"key":"693_CR18","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Mamak, K.: Whether to save a robot or a human: on the ethical and legal Limits of protection for robots. Front. Robot. AI 8, 712427 (2021). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/frobt.2021.712427","DOI":"10.3389\/frobt.2021.712427"},{"key":"693_CR19","unstructured":"M\u00fcller, V. C.: Ethics of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics. The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2023 Edition), Edward N. Zalta & Uri Nodelman (eds.), URL = https:\/\/plato.stanford.edu\/archives\/fall2023\/entries\/ethics-ai\/, December 16th (2023)"},{"key":"693_CR20","unstructured":"Pinker, S.: The Stupidity of Dignity. Human Life Review, Jg. 34 (2008-03-01), Heft 2, S. 75\u201382 (reprint of: Pinker S. THE STUPIDITY OF DIGNITY Conservative bioethics' latest, most dangerous ploy. NEW REPUBLIC, Jg. 238 (2008), Heft 4836, S. 28\u20133)"},{"key":"693_CR21","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","unstructured":"Thielscher, C., Krol, B., Heinemann, S., Schlander, M.: Ethical decomposition as a new method to analyse moral dilemmata. INFORMATIK 2019: 50 Jahre Gesellschaft f\u00fcr Informatik\u2014Informatik f\u00fcr Gesellschaft (2019). https:\/\/doi.org\/10.18420\/inf2019_07","DOI":"10.18420\/inf2019_07"},{"key":"693_CR22","unstructured":"Tiedemann, P.: Menschenw\u00fcrde als Rechtsbegriff. 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