MASTERS in Technology Management: Ethical Theories and IT Applications

This report provides an overview of various ethical theories, including ethical egoism, utilitarianism, altruism, consequentialism, moral relativism, and Kantianism, with a focus on their application within the field of Information Technology. Each theory is defined, and its advantages and disadvantages are discussed, accompanied by specific examples illustrating their relevance to IT scenarios. The report covers topics such as user security, web neutrality, data tracking, and the ethical implications of actions by individuals like Edward Snowden and Julian Assange, offering a comprehensive analysis of ethical considerations in technology management. Desklib offers this and many more solved assignments and past papers for students.

MASTERS IN TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT-ETHICS IN IT 1
Masters in Technology Management-Ethics in IT
Name
Course and Unit Name
Date

MASTERS IN TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT-ETHICS IN IT 2
Theory Definition of Theory
(include
reference/source)
Advantages/Disadvantages
(Be explicit in your response)
Example in Information Technology
(Be explicit in your response)
Ethical
Egoism
This theory posits that
everybody should act in
their own self interest
because every entity/
individual is familiar, in
an intimate way, with
their own individual
needs (Gill, 2013)
Its advantages include its ability to confer a
greater sense of personal identity within a
community. It ensures the basic needs of an
individual are met, and promotes sustainable
households
It also has limitations; it can destroy
relationships, say between computer equipment
makers and consumers; it can eliminate
objectivity completely. Further, for it to
succeed, everyone must practice its philosophy
(Gill, 2013)
An Example where it is an advantage is
with regard to customer/ user security
and anonymity, where user information
in social platforms or other web portals
is kept absolutely safe
An example where it is a demerit is in
commercial interests, where computer
anti virus makers also develop viruses
and force customers to pay for the ‘new’
anti virus.
Utilitarianis
m
This theory posits that
actions that are deemed
the best are those that
maximize utility, where
the definition of ‘utility’
is neither standard nor
Advantages
It helps promote a world that is happier and
helps people consider the effects their actions
would have. It helps crate a strong sense of
purpose since each decision to made gains a
greater importance. It helps when tough choices
An example of the positive effect of
utilitarianism in IT is in web neutrality
A disadvantage then becomes the
removal of the web neutrality by the US
government, that will affect the whole

MASTERS IN TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT-ETHICS IN IT 3
universal (Gill, 2013) have to be made as it forces one to think
rationally.
Disadvantages
The future cannot be predicted based on the
outcome of the decision. With this approach,
favoritism becomes natural because people
hardly make utilitarian decisions if people close
to them would be negatively affected. Because
it requires rationality and poring over many
options, it can lead to missed opportunities
(Gill, 2013)
world (Savov, 2017)
Altruism This theory posits that
individuals are obliged,
in a moral sense, to act
in the best interest of the
others, and thereby,
make a sacrifice (Gill,
2013)
Advantages
Enhanced overall happiness when a person
knows that their actions/ sacrifices made others
happier
It enhances the ego of the person sacrificing in
increasing their social self worth
Disadvantages
It leads to those sacrificing being taken
advantage of; and one can neglect their own
needs. If everyone acts to maximize their own
happiness, then ego sets in and eventually, no
one is happy (Gill, 2013)
A good example that portrays the
advantages and disadvantages of
altruism is Julian Assange and Wiki
Leaks; while he has made several
sacrifiecs, to the point of having an
arrest warrant issued against him, he has
bequeathed the world information that is
hidden from them, yet they ought to
have access to such information, such as
how public taxes are spent during wars
(Žižek, 2013)
Consequentia
lism
This is a normative
ethical theory positing
that judgment on
whether one’s actions
Advantages
The end justifies the means ; it is also a flexible
approach to doing things
An example are websites that track
people’s browsing data without
expressly explaining this to the user,
then obtains an d shares this information

MASTERS IN TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT-ETHICS IN IT 4
are wrong or right is
based on the
consequences of their
conduct (Kolb, 2008)
Disadvantages
People can take actions that harm others, just
because it results in the greater good
It is not practical for use in the real life as
people have to research the consequences of
their actions before acting, leading to many lost
opportunities (Kolb, 2008)
for profit to advertisers that then send
targeted adverts to the IP address of that
user; if the person was browsing life
saving health information and the
websites use Cookies to track their
activity and sell this information to
advertisers for profit, who then send the
information to the web user
Moral
Relativism
This theory argues that
no absolute or universal
moral principles exists,
that morality is relative
(Kolb, 2008)
Advantages
people can make their own decisions, a key
pillar of democracy
It enables better understanding of other people’s
cultures as assimilation is eliminated
It is very flexible
Disadvantages
Implies some cultural practices such as censure
of Internet use cannot be criticized
It stifles progress because there is no need to
better the society
It is just a step away from subjectivist thinking
(Kolb, 2008)
Pornography and other destrcutive
information being posted on the web for
all that are interested to consume; but it
has severe moral effects in certain
cultures, such as Islamic societies
Kantianism This theory holds that
the consequences of
people’s actions do not
determine whether the
actions are/ were right
or wrong; what matters
Advantages
A straightforward theory based on reason, and
which anyone can access
Morality is independent of religious laws,
consequences, or motives
It clarifies that morality entails performing
An example of Kantianism is the
Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning
cases, where the two individuals, out of
a moral duty to societies, leaked and
made public information that was
otherwise highly classified (Žižek,

MASTERS IN TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT-ETHICS IN IT 5
is whether they will
fulfill people’s duty
(Reynolds, 2017)
one’s duty
Aims to treat all fairly
Disadvantages
It is an abstract theory that is not easy to apply
Its principle of universality can be used to
justify anything
rarely d people cat out of duty; people expect
something in return (Reynolds, 2017)
2013)

MASTERS IN TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT-ETHICS IN IT 6
References
Gill, R. (2013). Theory and practice of leadership. London: Sage, p.425.
Kolb, R. (2008). Encyclopedia of business ethics and society. 1st ed. Los Angeles: Sage, pp.85-88.
Reynolds, G. (2017). Ethics in information technology. 6th ed. Boston, MA: Cengage, pp.403-404.
Savov, V. (2017). The US net neutrality fight affects the whole world. [online] The Verge. Available at:
https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/23/16693840/net-neutrality-us-fcc-global-effect [Accessed 5 Feb. 2018].
Žižek, S. (2013). Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning and Julian Assange: our new heroes | Slavoj Žižek. [online] the Guardian.
Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/sep/03/snowden-manning-assange-new-heroes [Accessed 5
Feb. 2018].