Transcript Key System Applications in the Organization

Chapter 5
Ethical and Social Impact of
Information Systems
Ethical and Social Impact of
Information Systems
• Understanding Ethical and Social Issues Related
to Systems
– Ethics are the principles of right and wrong that can be
used by individuals acting as free moral agents to make
choices to guide their behavior.
– Like other technologies, IT can be used to achieve
social progress and it also be used to commit crimes.
– A Model for Thinking about Ethical, Social, and
Political Issues
• Ethical, social, and political issues are tightly coupled together.
• Social institutions cannot respond actively to new situations.
2
Chapter 5
Ethical and Social Impact of
Information Systems
• Political institutions also require time before developing new
laws and often require the demonstration of real harm before
they act.
– Five Moral Dimensions of the Information Age
• Information rights and obligations: The rights that individuals
and org. possess with respect to information about themselves.
• Property rights: Intellectual property rights
• Accountability and control: Who is accountable and liable for
harm done to the property rights?
• System quality: What are the standards needed to protect
individual and society rights?
• Quality of life: What values should be preserved in an info and
knowledge based society?
3
Chapter 5
Ethical and Social Impact of
Information Systems
–
Key Technology Trends that Raise Ethical
Issues
•
•
•
1.
2.
3.
4.
4
The ethical issues long preceded IT.
IT has heightened ethical concerns.
There are four key technology trends responsible
for these ethical stresses:
The doubling of computing power
Advances in data storage
Advances in datamining techniques
Advances in networking
Chapter 5