This book provides cross-cultural ethical exploration of sex robots and their social impact. What are the implications of sex robots and related technological innovations for society and culture? How should we evaluate the significance of sexual relations with robots that look like women, men or children? Critics argue that sex robots present a clear risk to real persons and a social degradation that will increase sexual violence, objectify women, encourage pedophilia, reinforce negative body images, increase forms of sexual dysfunction, and pass on sexually transmitted disease. Proponents judge robotic sexual companionship as just another step in the exploration of human desire. They see sex robots, and similar technology, such as virtual reality pornography, as providing autonomy affirming companionship for the lonely and a relatively harmless outlet for sexual fantasies that avoids the use of human prostitutes and thus reduces sexual victimization. Some appreciate sex robots as a social evil, others as a positive good, and still others as a harmless pastime. How we come to terms with such conceptual and moral concerns will have significant implications for society and the future of human relations. This book is of great interest to researchers in bioethics, human sexual behavior, AI ethics, and philosophy of sex.
 

Ruiping FAN received his medical degree from Baotou College of Medicine in Inner Mongolia and PhD in philosophy from Rice University in Houston. He is currently a professor of philosophy at the City University of Hong Kong. He also serves as Co-Editor of theInternational Journal of Chinese& Comparative Philosophy of Medicine (Hong Kong), Associate Editor ofThe Journal of Medicine& Philosophy (USA) andChinese Medical Ethics (mainland China). His research focuses on bioethics as well as Confucianism and comparative philosophy. He has published over 170 journal articles and book chapters (over 90 in English and 80 in Chinese). Among his two monographs and ten edited/co-edited volumes isReconstructionist Confucianism: Rethinking Morality after the West via Springer in 2010.

Mark J. Cherry is the Dr. Patricia A. Hayes Professor in Applied Ethics and Professor of Philosophy at St. Edwards University, Austin, Texas. He earned his undergraduate degree in philosophy from the University of Houston and his doctorate degree in philosophy from Rice University in Houston, Texas. His research compasses ethics and bioethics, together with social and political philosophy. He is author ofKidney for Sale by Owner: Human Organs, Transplantation, and the Market (Georgetown University Press, 2005; 2015) andSex, Family, and the Culture Wars (Routledge, 2016). He is Editor ofThe Journal of Medicine and Philosophy (Oxford University Press), Senior Editor ofChristian Bioethics (Oxford University Press), and Editor-in-Chief ofHealthCare Ethics Committee Forum (Springer); he is Co-editor of the book seriesThe Annals of Bioethics (Routledge) and Editor of the book seriesPhilosophical Studies in Contemporary Culture (Springer) 

Preface.- Chapter 1. Introduction (Mark J. Cherry).- Part I. Digisexuality, Sexbots, and Other Twenty-First Century Innovations.- Chapter 2. Sociable Robots for Later Life: Carebots, Friendbots and Sexbots (Nancy S. Jecker).- Chapter 3. Does a Love Machine have Emotions? An Ethical Examination of Empathy in Human-Robot Relations (Wang Jue).- Chapter 4. Nudge Nudge, Wink Wink: Sex Robots as Social Influencers (Mark Howard and Robert Sparrow).- Part II. Sex: Shifting Cultural and Moral Norms.- Chapter 5. Why Sex? Sex-bots from a Daoist Perspective (Ellen Y. Zhang).- Chapter 6. Could You Marry a Sex Robot? Shifting Sexual Norms and the Transformation of the Family (Mark J. Cherry).- Chapter 7. The Moral Significance of Human-Likeness in Sex Robots: A Confucian Perspective (Lawrence Yung).- Chapter 8. What Kinds of Use of Sex Robots Can be Morally Allowed? A Confucian Perspective (Hanhui Xu).- Chapter 9. Simulated Sex: On the Public Health Crisis of Unbridled Eroticism (Ryan Nash).- PartIII. Reponses and Critique.- Chapter 10. Response and Critique to Part I.- Chapter 11: Response and Critique to Part II (Ruiping Fan)