A Life With Others…In Your Head?
By Stepheni Uh Undergraduate Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology Major Emory University This post was written as part of the Contemporary Issues in Neuroethics Course Although decades have passed since the world first heard of Billy Milligan , his predicament and story still cause confusion and wonder. As the field of neuroscience is expanding, more light has been shed upon his condition: an extreme case of dissociative identity disorder (DID), formerly known as multiple personality disorder. Advancements in neuroscience (i.e. in research techniques) has led to the investigation of possible neurobiological correlations to the symptoms of DID – yet, due to the rare cases of this disorder, the possible neurobiological basis for DID has not been established. Despite the lack of raw data, per se, neuroscience has fueled new perspectives regarding the nature of DID such as those involving the ideas of culpability, personhood, and individuality. Billy Milligan Billy Milligan, whose birth nam...