Ethical Theories and ICT: Analyzing Professional Practice and Ethics

This report examines the relevance of ethical theories in the field of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). It explores various ethical frameworks including deontology, which emphasizes adherence to duties and rules; utilitarianism, focusing on maximizing overall benefit; rights theory, which prioritizes the protection of individual rights; and virtue theory, which emphasizes character. The report highlights the importance of these theories in guiding ethical decision-making within the ICT industry, specifically in areas such as data handling, accessibility, and security. It also emphasizes the importance of professional codes of ethics and concludes by suggesting a periodic re-evaluation of ethical standards by professionals.

Professional Practice and Ethics 1
ETHICAL THEORIES
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Professional Practice and Ethics 2
Relevance of Ethical Theories in ICT
Introduction
ICT is defined as the information and communication technology. It is a technology of using
computers and internet. These technological inventions have caused positive and negative
influences in the society.
Ethical theories help in decision making as they give guidelines to decision makers. For good
result, there are principles (Mertens & Ginsberg 2009) to be looked upon; these principles
include;
Beneficence which guides decision maker to do what is right and good.
Autonomy which allows decision makers to focus on decisions which makes people autonomous
and with control over their lives.
Justice is another principle which helps in focusing on fairness in decision making.
Types of ethical theories
Deontology which says that obligations and duties should be followed strictly when making
decision (Gray 2009).
Utilitarianism which is a form of consequentialism theory and is states that one’s activity is used
to predict the outcome of an action and the one that produces high benefits which is ethically
right (Jones & Bigley 2007). Have two types; Act utilitarianism and Rule utilitarianism.
Rights theory whereby all rights are defined by a society and should be protected and given high
priority.

Professional Practice and Ethics 3
Virtue theory which shows a person by character than by action.
Professional code of ethics is the ethical benchmark for professionals globally despite of jobs,
culture, laws (Bynum & Simon 2004).
Relevance. How the information of a company is captured, processed and stored, accessibility
and its safety are all ethical, hence its importance in the ICT industry.
Conclusion .Professionals should re-evaluate their ethical standards during their re-assessment
period.

Professional Practice and Ethics 4
Reference List
Bynum, T.W. and Simon, R., 2004. Computer ethics and professional responsibility.
Gray, M., 2009. Moral sources and emergent ethical theories in social work. British Journal of
Social Work, 40(6), pp.1794-1811.
Jones, T.M., Felps, W. and Bigley, G.A., 2007. Ethical theory and stakeholder-related decisions:
The role of stakeholder culture. Academy of Management Review, 32(1), pp.137-155
MERTENS, D. M., & GINSBERG, P. E. (2009). The handbook of social research ethics.
Thousand Oaks, CA, Sage Publications.