Neurological interventions are sometimes used to prevent criminal behavior. For instance, in some jurisdictions, sex offenders can be compelled to undergo treatment designed to reduce sexual desire. As David Birks and Thomas Douglas observe in their introduction to this volume, “chemical castration” may be just the tip of the iceberg. As neuroscience advances, it could reveal many other ways to control criminality. For instance, pharmacological treatments may help combat violent behavior or drug abuse. Such “crime-preventing neurointerventions” (CPNs) have been controversial. On the one hand, proponents argue that CPNs could be both more effective and more humane than incarceration. On the other, critics argue that coercively imposed CPNs violate individual rights and that society has a poor track record of using medical interventions for social control. The nineteen original essays in this book comprehensively cover and effectively advance the moral debate over the appropriate use of CPNs.

神经干预有时被用来预防犯罪行为。例如，在某些辖区，性罪犯可能被迫接受旨在减少性欲的治疗。正如大卫·伯克斯（David Birks）和托马斯·道格拉斯（Thomas Douglas）在介绍该书时所观察到的那样，“化学cast割”可能只是冰山一角。随着神经科学的进步，它可能揭示出许多其他控制犯罪的方法。例如，药物治疗可能有助于打击暴力行为或药物滥用。这种“防止犯罪的神经干预”（CPN）一直存在争议。一方面，支持者认为，与监禁相比，中央人民警察可能更有效，更人道。在另一，批评者认为，强加的CPN侵犯了个人权利，社会使用医疗干预措施进行社会控制的记录不佳。本书中的19篇原始论文全面涵盖并有效地推进了关于合理使用CPN的道德争论。