Published in Neuroethics on August 8, 2026, this research presents findings from semi-structured phenomenological interviews with locked-in syndrome (LIS) patients and their daily communication partners regarding brain-computer interface applications. While traditional BCI research focuses on improving speed and accuracy of communication, this functional perspective fails to capture the existential importance and richness of human communication. Employing phenomenological frameworks, the researchers argue that communication should be understood as embodied and relational rather than purely functional.
The study found that LIS patients and their communication partners face not only the risk of being unable to communicate but also the consequence of potentially not seeing and perceiving each other as complete persons. Conversely, access to and richness of bodily and technological communication channels are enabling factors for what the researchers term 'relational personhood'—the mutual acknowledgment of one another as full persons. These findings suggest a new perspective for BCI design, emphasizing the need to incorporate relational personhood in clinical outcome assessment of BCIs for communication impairment. This approach promises more humanistic and effective BCI applications that help patients and their communication partners restore complete interpersonal interaction.