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COMPUTER ETHICS - An Introduction - 2

This document provides an introduction to computer ethics through definitions of the field from different thinkers and scholars over time. It begins with the "Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics" and then discusses early pioneers in computer ethics like Norbert Wiener in the 1940s-50s. It provides definitions of computer ethics from thinkers in the 1970s-80s like Maner, Johnson, and Moor, with Moor providing one of the most broad and influential definitions. The document also discusses definitions from Bynum and Gotterbarn that see computer ethics relating to societal impacts and professional standards, respectively. It concludes by previewing topics to be covered in the next week.

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50 views14 pages

COMPUTER ETHICS - An Introduction - 2

This document provides an introduction to computer ethics through definitions of the field from different thinkers and scholars over time. It begins with the "Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics" and then discusses early pioneers in computer ethics like Norbert Wiener in the 1940s-50s. It provides definitions of computer ethics from thinkers in the 1970s-80s like Maner, Johnson, and Moor, with Moor providing one of the most broad and influential definitions. The document also discusses definitions from Bynum and Gotterbarn that see computer ethics relating to societal impacts and professional standards, respectively. It concludes by previewing topics to be covered in the next week.

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Zheb Herb Web
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© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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COMPUTER Ethics An Introduction

Samuel Tetteh-Nartey

Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics


I. Thou shalt not steal mouse balls. II. Thou shalt not use a computer to harm other people. III. Thou shalt not interfere with other peoples computer work. IV. Thou shalt not snoop around in other peoples computer files. V. Thou shalt not use a computer to steal. VI.Thou shalt not use a computer to bear false witness. VII. Thou shalt not copy or use software for which you have not paid (or been given authority to do so). VIII. Thou shalt not appropriate other peoples intellectual output. IX. Thou shalt think about the social consequences of the program you are writing or the system you are designing. X. Thou shalt always use a computer in ways that insure consideration and respect for your fellow humans.

It is not enough that you should understand about applied science in order that your work may increase mans blessings. Concern for man himself and his fate must always form the chief interest of all technical endeavors. Albert Einstein

History of Computer Ethics


Father of Computer Ethics - Professor Norbert Wiener of MIT 1940s and 1950s Wieners works were essentially ignored by other thinkers In the 1970s and 1980s computer ethics was recreated and redefined by thinkers who did not realize that Wiener had already done so much work in the field. Today, more than 50 years after Wiener created computer ethics, some thinkers are still attempting to define the nature and boundaries of the subject. Let us briefly consider five different definitions that have been developed since the 1970s.

Computer Ethics Definitions


Maners Definition
The name computer ethics was not commonly used until the mid-1970s when Walter Maner began to use it. He defined this field of study as one that examines ethical problems aggravated, transformed or created by computer technology. Some old ethical problems, he said, were made worse by computers, while others came into existence because of computer technology.

Computer Ethics Definitions


Johnsons Definition
In her book, Computer Ethics (1985), Deborah Johnson said that computer ethics studies the way in which computers pose new versions of standard moral problems and moral dilemmas, exacerbating the old problems, and forcing us to apply
ordinary moral norms in uncharted realms.

Unlike Maner, she did not believe that computers create wholly new moral problems.Rather, she thought that computers gave a new twist to ethical questions that

Computer Ethics Definitions


Moors Definition
In his influential article What Is Computer Ethics? (1985), James Moor provided a definition of computer ethics that is much broader and more wide-ranging than those of Maner or Johnson He defined computer ethics as a field concerned with policy vacuums and conceptual muddles regarding the social and ethical use of information technology

Computer Ethics Definitions


A typical problem in Computer Ethics arises because there is a policy vacuum about how computer technology should be used. Computers provide us with new capabilities and these in turn give us new choices for action. Often, either no policies for conduct in these situations exist or existing policies seem inadequate. A central task of Computer Ethics is to determine what we should do in such cases, that is, formulate policies to guide our actions. . . . One difficulty is that along with a policy vacuum there is often a conceptual vacuum. Although a problem in Computer Ethics may seem clear initially, a little reflection reveals a conceptual muddle. What is needed in such cases is an analysis that provides a

Computer Ethics Definitions


Moor said that computer technology is genuinely revolutionary because it is logically malleable
Computers are logically malleable in that they can be shaped and molded to do any activity that can be characterized in terms of inputs, outputs and connecting logical operations. . . . Because logic applies everywhere, the potential applications of computer technology appear limitless. The computer is the nearest thing we have to a universal tool. Indeed, the limits of computers are

Computer Ethics Definitions


Bynums Definition
In 1989 Terrell Ward Bynum developed another broad definition of computer ethics following a suggestion in Moors 1985 paper. According to this view, computer ethics identifies and analyzes the impacts of information technology on such social and human values as health, wealth, work, opportunity, freedom, democracy, knowledge, privacy, security, self-

Computer Ethics Definitions


Donald Gotterbarns Definition From his perspective, computer ethics should be viewed as a branch of professional ethics, concerned primarily with standards of good practice and codes of conduct for computing professionals:

Computer Ethics Definitions


There is little attention paid to the domain of professional ethics the values that guide the day-to-day activities of computing professionals in their role as professionals. By computing professional I mean anyone involved in the design and development of computer artifacts. . . . The ethical decisions made during the development of these artifacts have a direct relationship to many of the issues

Computer Ethics Definitions


With this professional ethics approach to computer ethics, Gotterbarn co-authored the 1992 version of the ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct and led a team of scholars in the development of the 1999 ACM/IEEE Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice.

Next Week
Reason, Relativity, and Responsibility in Computer Ethics Philosophical & Professional Ethics

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