Ethics for the Information Age
| Published date | 01 March 1997 |
| Date | 01 March 1997 |
| DOI | 10.1177/026455059704400106 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
37
PENTIUM
Ethics
for
the
Information
Age
Pentium
explores
the
ethical
dilemmas
underlying
new
and
positive
developments
in
Information
Technology,
reflecting
some
of
the
ideas
of
Brian
Glastonbury
of
Southampton
University,
a
respected
commentator
on
IT
in
the
helping
services,
whom
Pentium
met
at
a
recent
IT
Conference
in
Finland.
There
are
realities
to
celebrate.
Whatever
criticism
may
be
levelled,
it
is
a
reality
that
IT
is
now
indispensable
to
the
health
and
social
services,
and
carries
out
a
wide
range
of
tasks
to
almost
uniform
satisfaction.
Very
few
people
would
contemplate
putting
the
clock
back
to
pre-computer
days.
There
are
also
pleasures
to
anticipate.
The
burgeoning
of
networks
has
brought
worries
(about
children
accessing
pornography
on
the
World
Wide
Web,
for
example),
but
they
pale
before
the
excitement
of
so
much
information
becoming
so
easily
available,
in
such
attractive
presentations.
It
may
be
an
over-statement
to
suggest
that
realities
tend
to
equate
with
failures,
and
dreams
with
nightmares,
but
scepticism
and
anxiety
are
rife.
Many
of
the
suspicions
which
existed
in
the
early
days
of
IT
in
the
human
services
have
returned,
as
strong
as
ever
and
reinforced
from
direct
experience.
If
there
is
a
prevailing
view,
it
is
that
we
need
to
be
realistic
and
conservative,
move
step-by-
step,
pay
much
more
attention
to
making
products
do
the
job
properly,
focus
on
the
needs
of
users
rather
than
the
aims
of
the
technology,
and
generally
be
more
level-
headed,
less
inclined
to
’jump
in
at
the
deep
end’
with
plans
for
the
future.
An
argument
put
forward
on
many
occasions
is
that
IT
cannot
function
properly
while
it
remains
unintegrated
with
societal
systems,
whether
by
system
is
meant
values,
traditions,
beliefs
and
prejudices,
or
a
host
of
other
matters
which
make
up
a
society.
The
pace
of
technological
progress
has
been
so
fast
that
it
has
been
difficult
for
social
integration
to take
place,
with
damaging
results
on
occasions,
such
as
the
emergence
of
a
’generation
gap’
based
on
IT
ignorance
and
’know-how’.
Community
and
Democracy
Some
commentators
have
argued
for
a
’stakeholder
analysis’
of
IT
development
as
an
essential
part
of
the
process
of
system
design,
development
or
implementation.
Essentially,
it
is
suggested
that
there
is
a
constituency
who
can
inform
such
developments,
a
key
part
of
which
is
the
user
community.
IT
applications
will
not
work
to
their
best
effect
unless
and
until
the
population
at
large,
and
significant
people
in
the
community,
feel
a
sense
of
participation
and
’ownership’.
A
similar
concern
addresses
the
relationship
between
information
(and
information
systems)
and
democracy.
The
ways
in
which
awareness
and
participation
can
be
encouraged
and
enabled,
this
time
through
the
provision
of
a
public
access
database
on
wide-
ranging
matters,
including
subjects
relevant
to
physical
and
social
well-
being.
It
can
be
argued
that
not
only
is
this
emphasis
on
accessibility
vital
to
the
success
of
IT
applications,
but
that
accessibility
is
a
key
component
of
any
set
of
social,
economic
or
citizens’
rights.
Specifically,
to
probe
how
accessibility
and
inaccessibility
operate,
where
they
are
to
be
found,
and
what
actions
need
to
be
taken
to
promote
best
access.
The
ethical
agenda
for
IT
is
not
specific
to
the
health
and
social
services,
though
the
agenda
item
on
privacy
and
confidentiality
(data
protection)
has
received
extensive
attention
in
this
context.
The
ethical
agenda
is
global
and
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