(solved) IT Ethics Assignment
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Added on 2020-03-28
(solved) IT Ethics Assignment
Added on 2020-03-28
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Running Head: IT ETHICS 1Topics in IT Ethics<Student ID><Student Name><University Name>
IT ETHICS 2Introduction:The implementation of ICT systems and automation of workforce in organizationshave created profound concerns for the employment of humans and have been highlighted inmajority of media sources. The identification of the case studies of companies such asFoxconn, Amazon and examples of small scale organizations and a critical review of thedifferent cases from the perspective of classical ethical theories such as Deontology,Utilitarianism, Contract theory and Virtue theory. Despite the wide uproar in the media overreplacement of human jobs by artificial intelligence, there have been substantial criticismsthat point towards the minimal impact of automation on downsizing and reforms inemployment (Dekker, Salomons & Waal, 2017). As per Hammond, the discussion on the ethical issues from the perspectives of theethical theories would provide viable insights into the credibility of the decisions identified inthe different case studies. Furthermore, the outcomes of reviewing ethical issues could alsobe helpful for drawing justifiable and logical conclusions necessary for resolution of ethicalissues. The big question to be resolved in context of this assignment is, ‘Are AI and robots athreat to human employment?’ Some of the common ethical issues which are observed incontext of ICT applications include references to privacy, ICT professionalism, intellectualproperty, community and identity, social inclusion, cyber-crime, security and employment(Hammond, 2017). Employment could be perceived as a major ethical issue in context of thecase study due to the application of robots and artificial intelligence for automation of humantasks (Ferrell & Fraedrich, 2015). The ethical issue pertaining to employment could bereviewed from the perspective of the four theories in order to determine the rightfulness orwrongfulness of the action of employing robots.Deontological theoryDeontological theory suggests that actions should be guided by moral obligations andthe impact of categorical imperatives can be perceived clearly in the case of this theory. Thecategorical imperatives identified in the ethical theory of deontology include the formulationof universality and formulation of humanity. The imperative of universality is directedtowards the assumption that a particular action or principle of action followed by anindividual could be assumed as a general rule without contradiction that. The general ruleimplies that similar actions could be validated in the case of similar scenarios (Kant &Categorical Imperatives: Crash Course Philosophy, 2017).
IT ETHICS 3The ethical concerns of employment identified as a response to the automation ofhuman work processes with AI and robots could be reviewed from the perspective of theformulation of universality that preferences of one organization for automation of itscomplete workforce could lead to establishment of benchmarks for other organizations to layoff their workforce. However, this can be contradicted on the grounds of formulation ofhumanity involved as a categorical imperative in deontology. As per Hammond, the formulation of humanity refers to the factor that humans cannotbe used as mere means and can be used only as means to accomplish something. Therefore,organizations with the intentions to replace their human workforce with robots and AI shouldemphasize on the factor that employees could be assumed as mere means when replaced withAI and robots (Hammond, 2017). Another prominent perspective that can be drawn forwardfrom the critical reflection on deontological theory reflects on the prospects of humansbecoming mere means in context of employment due to the large scale employment of robotsand artificial intelligence. Utilitarian theory:The issue of employment identified from the case study could also be reviewed fromthe perspective of utilitarianism which is also accounted as a profound ethical theory. Theprinciple of utilitarianism is based on the fact that actions are measured on the grounds ofpleasure produced by the action. However, the classification of utilitarianism into differentforms such as act utilitarianism which could be observed on the grounds of morality ofactions is determined by the measurement of good actions that bring good outcomes for agreater number of people (Osawa et al., 2017). On the other hand, the rule utilitarianism accounted for a wider exposition on theethical theory of utilitarianism which emphasizes on adhering to certain precedents whichlead to the most favourable outcomes for the higher number of individuals possible(Utilitarianism: Crash Course Philosophy, 2017). Therefore on the grounds of actutilitarianism, the employment of AI and robots improves the productivity of the organizationand leads to favourable outcomes for a large share of employees in the organization.However, the concerns of the employees that lose their jobs due to this initiative should alsobe taken into concern for determining morality of actions. Therefore rule based utilitarianismcould be applied in the case of ethical issue of employment to reflect on the measures forrelocation of the replaced employees (Trevino & Nelson, 2016).
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