CMSC 304

Social and Ethical Issues in Information Technology

Ethics Frameworks

Today's Agenda

1. Some slides on "Intro to Ethics Theories"
2. Discussion of the Readings

Why Ethics + Technology?

• Ethical issues in computing fields can seem like new problems because they deal with technologies that have never existed before!

• But, if we extract and abstract patterns and types of questions asked in tech ethics, we'll see that humans have been grappling with these questions for all of recorded history
  • Ancient Greeks argued over ideal values, most effective methods of education
    • Same issues roboticists face with today when contemplating the value and risks of artificial intelligence (AI)
  • Scholars in fifteenth-century Europe debated how printing press might democratize (or destroy) established bodies of knowledge
    • Same issues that plague social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter today about connection, fake news, advertising

• intelligent robots

• big data

• social media

Burton, Emanuelle; Goldsmith, Judy; Mattei, Nicholas; Siler, Cory; Swiatek, Sara-Jo. Computing and Technology Ethics: Engaging through Science Fiction (pp. 8-9). MIT Press.

https://www.britannica.com/technology/printing-press

https://news.colgate.edu/magazine/2020/05/01/how-to-survive-in-ancient-greece/

Intro to Ethics Theories

• Conversations about ethics can be extremely difficult
  • we don't all agree about what is "good"
  • we don't all agree about how to achieve "good"
  • we struggle to pinpoint reasons why we don't agree on these things

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woman_yelling_at_a_cat#/media/File:WomanYellingAtACat_meme.jpg

Types of thinking in ethics

• consider a question from multiple perspectives
• see these perspectives as rooted in specific historical contexts;
• weigh evidence to determine which of several positions is more plausible;
• tolerate the ambiguity and uncertainty that generally surrounds the interpretation of the event

reference

Basic Questions in Ethics

• Over the years, humanity has devised different systems of thought to help work through difficult ethical problems
• Studying these ethical frameworks will give you:
  • Different ways of asking questions about tough ethical challenges, different ways of answering those questions
  • Understanding of things you already perceive, or could potentially perceive, from a fresh perspective

• Often, there is no single best answer. In most cases, every possible choice has trade-offs

• Three types of problems:

  1. limited resources

  2. competing types of goals

  3. different ideas about what is good

Burton, Emanuelle; Goldsmith, Judy; Mattei, Nicholas; Siler, Cory; Swiatek, Sara-Jo. Computing and Technology Ethics: Engaging through Science Fiction (pp. 8-9). MIT Press.

Basic Questions in Ethics

• Three types of problems:

  1. limited resources

  2. competing types of goals

  3. different ideas about what is good

Basic Questions in Ethics

• Three types of problems:

  1. limited resources

     • What should be done when the demand for something >> how much of it is available?

     • These issues seem easily solved by using technology to "balance the scales"

       • e.g. artificial hearts to replace the failing ones, more fuel-efficient cars so that oil is less in demand, or high-yield crops that can feed more people

       • Often this does not solve the problem completely, because additional costs are introduced with that solution

  2. competing types of goals

  3. different ideas about what is good

Basic Questions in Ethics

• Three types of problems:

  1. limited resources

  2. competing types of goals

     • multiple types of things or goals come into conflict

     • more than one way to achieve "good" 

       • e.g. you get two job offers, both of which are good, but you need to choose one

  3. different ideas about what is good

Basic Questions in Ethics

• Three types of problems:

  1. limited resources

  2. competing types of goal

  3. different ideas about what is good

     • sometimes people share the same goals but disagree on how to get there

       • e.g. is nuclear power a good option for the environment or a terrible one? Two environmental advocates with same overall goal (save the planet) can come to different conclusions, disagreeing on how to assess environmental well-being, or on what policies or practices should be changed

     • these disagreements are often invisible even to the people who are having the argument - they interpret that goal of "save the planet" to mean different things

Why Ethics?

• Ethics is the theory and practice of ways to make good choices and lead a good life

• It involves both knowledge and skills (i.e. practice)

• The Computing field is particularly prone to ethical issues
  • technology increasingly creates the conditions in which human beings live their lives
  • the choices and actions of technology creators have a meaningful impact on the wider world
  • and those choices and actions are based on how you answer the basic philosophical question of “what is worth having or doing?”

Markkula Center for Applied Ethics

Why Ethics?

• The Computing field is particularly prone to ethical issues
  • technology now determines how we live, how we spend our time
  • the choices and actions of technology creators have a meaningful impact on the wider world
  • and those choices and actions are based on how you answer the basic philosophical question of “what is worth having or doing?”
    • you can do more good in the world by understanding what other people value and why, instead of trying to make them conform to your own assumptions​
    • although human values can be influenced, they are complex and deeply embedded
      • we are often unaware of how our values impact our decisions

Markkula Center for Applied Ethics

3 Ethical Frameworks

• Deontological: This framework is based on a set of rules such as company rules, government rules, or religious rules such as the Ten Commandments. If the action in question adheres to the rules, it is considered to be the right thing to do in that context.

• Utilitarian: There are many varieties of this approach, but the basic idea is that the right thing to do is the thing that brings the most utility, or happiness, to the most people. While the action may help some and hurt others, if the benefits to some outweigh the costs to others, the action is “the right thing.”

• Virtue Ethics takes a completely different approach—it examines the background of our moral decisions and actions. For example, it asks how a person who is generous will see a situation and its moral demands differently from someone who is greedy. The “right thing to do” is the thing that would be chosen by the virtuous person.

Outside Ethical Frameworks

• Our “intuitive awareness of value”
• Intrinsically motivating
• Retrainable; fallible; unavoidable
• We're not the only species with a sense of justice

Discussion Guidelines Reminder

CMSC 304

Social and Ethical Issues in Information Technology

Utilitarianism

Virtue Ethics Discussion

2 Rounds of Discussion + Report Out

• Groups must be 3 people minimum, 4 maximum
• Each person should take some individual notes during the discussion
• Choose a scribe to write down the group's summary for each question
  • For each question in a round, choose a different scribe
• The goal is NOT to gain consensus, rather to appreciate and consider different viewpoints + examples
• Feel free to reference the readings while discussing
  • Reference, not "read for the first time"
• When the round ends, I'll ask the groups to volunteer a summary of their discussion
  • Anyone from the group can answer, doesn't have to just be the scribe
• I'll then ask if anyone disagrees, or has a counterpoint, or if you had a different interpretation
• Each group that participates will get some points
• Please raise your hand if you need clarification or have a question, or need some inspiration! This is not a quiz or test
  • No ChatGPT or other AI during discussions

Week 3 Discussion: Virtue Ethics

This week we read 3 things:

CMSC 304

Social and Ethical Issues in Information Technology

Round 1

CMSC 304

Social and Ethical Issues in Information Technology

Round 2

1. In The Gambler, the “maelstrom” represents a powerful force shaping media content based on public interest and social pressures. 

   • How does this reflect what you’ve observed about how social media platforms and algorithms shape user behavior and decision-making?

   • Are people aware of how much social pressure influences the content they consume and create?

   • If you think they’re unaware, how best to educate the public about these effects?

2. Ong’s cultural background plays a key role in shaping his values and ethics in The Gambler, while his American colleagues seem to operate under different norms.

   • What does the Virtue Ethics framework say about virtues in terms of cultural and social context?

   • How do cultural differences influence the ethical decisions people make when engaging with technology or media?

   • Can you identify examples where different cultural values lead to different behaviors in the digital space?

CMSC 304

Social and Ethical Issues in Information Technology

Virtue Ethics

Ethics Frameworks

Virtue Ethics

• How to live "the good life"?
  • Ethics is a subset of what it means to live a full and happy life
• A good society is good because it makes it possible for people to flourish and develop human excellence
• Virtues are the basic building blocks of human character- fundamental qualities like kindness, generosity, or self-respect.
  • according to virtue ethics, virtues aren’t innate, they’re the capacity to exercise and develop that quality through practice

Virtue Ethics

• Virtue ethics thinks about human character in terms of some common library of capacities
  • ​Think of it like character creation in video games

https://gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/399569/what-game-is-this-character-creation-screen-from

• According to virtue ethics, a chronic liar would only be considered deficient in honesty, rather than lacking honesty entirely (i.e. you can still put skill points into that attribute)
• Virtues are revealed not through single actions but through patterns of action (gaining EXP)

Virtue Ethics

• Virtue ethics thinks about human character in terms of some common library of capacities
  • ​Think of it like character creation in video games

https://gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/399569/what-game-is-this-character-creation-screen-from

• According to virtue ethics, a chronic liar would only be considered deficient in honesty, rather than lacking honesty entirely (i.e. you can still put skill points into that attribute)
• Virtues are revealed not through single actions but through patterns of action (gaining EXP)
• "habit of virtue"

Virtue Ethics

• Virtues are NOT the same as personality
• For example, being an optimistic person or an extrovert, or having leadership qualities or aptitude for higher math might often be beneficial or good traits to have
  • But not necessarily moral traits
  • they can be used to do bad actions, accomplish bad ends, or lead to personal corruption).

https://integratedethicslabs.org/labs/virtue-ethics/

• The predominant form of virtue ethics in East Asia comes from the teachings of the ancient Chinese philosopher Confucius
• In the Confucian tradition, our interpersonal bonds are a fundamental part of what makes us people
• An important tool for cultivating virtues in Confucianism is mindful exercise of social rituals
  • people might be coerced to behave well through the threat of punishment, but...
  • a system of meaningful rituals would more gently promote flourishing as well as order

Main Guy #1 of Virtue Ethics

Confucius (5th century BCE)

• Also emphasizes what things a human being needs to do in order to achieve deep happiness and satisfaction with life—to flourish
• Aristotle sez we need particular qualities of character both to help us recognize:
  • what makes us happy
  • how to pursue happiness effectively
• Some example Aristotelian virtues: courage, generosity, friendliness, temperance, concern for justice
• In order to flourish, one must also have a well-developed sense of practical wisdom
  • practical wisdom = how best to act in a given situation? 
  • practical wisdom can only be gained by experience

Main Guy #2 of Virtue Ethics

Aristotle (340 BCE)

What about vice?

• In virtue ethics, basic physical appetites like hunger and fear are a basic part of human nature
  • This means that they are fundamentally good for humans, and necessary for us to flourish
  • Suppressing the appetites entirely is just as damaging to a person as allowing them to expand out of control
• Instead, learn to regulate appetites and desires and exercise them in moderation
  • With practice, this will come naturally, forming a habit
• ​Because virtue ethics takes a character-based approach to the world, it cannot and does not aim to offer principles or formulae
  • Why might this be particularly suitable for technology?

Course Rhythm

• Most people never become perfect in any virtue, let alone in all of them. For this reason, it is better to think of virtue as a spectrum rather than as a binary.
• Being good at designing webpages does not make you generous, but it does make your generosity more effective in this situation.
• Because virtue ethics takes a character-based approach to the world, it cannot and does not aim to offer principles or formulae that can be equally well applied by any person.
• Practical wisdom can be developed only through experience.
  the definition of fluctuating changes over time and with different cultures
• virtue ethics is organized around the idea of moderation, finding the middle path, the golden mean. However it’s not the mathematical center, it will vary between situations

Limitations of virtue ethics

• Focused on local norms, which means it's not universal and can change
  • also means it lacks a universal principle of justice
• Virtue ethics has also been criticized as inaccessible for people with some disabilities or neurodivergencies 
  • Requires strong capacities for emotionally engaged, social, and intuitive decision making
  • Those capacities don’t come as naturally to many people on the autism spectrum, a population particularly heavily represented in engineering

What are our moral obligations?

According to virtue ethics

• Make a consistent and conscious effort to develop our moral character for the better
  • As Confucius says, the real ethical failing is not having faults, "but rather failing to amend them."
• We should find standards of conduct to follow within our own societies
  • specifically, in those special persons who are exemplary human beings with qualities of character (virtues) to which we should aspire
•  We should practice lifelong cultivation of practical wisdom (good moral judgment)
  • practice discernment in different situations
  • virtuous persons flourish by acting justly with others
  • virtuous persons contribute to the common good by providing a moral example for others to admire and follow
• To answer the question of "what should I do in this scenario", ask "what would a virtuous person do?" and then do that thing

Virtue Ethics In-class Activity #2

Virtue Ethics In-class Activity #2

Virtue Ethics In-class Activity #2

Report Out

Wrap Up

• We are not born with virtues, we develop them over a lifetime through practice, imitating role models, and reflecting on how the world around us forms our character.
• Virtue ethicists suggest a number of ways to cultivate virtue and good character. Before I share some of them, what ideas do you have?

Reflection Journal

Reminder: please ensure your reflections are personal to you, rather than the default outputs from an AI.