REVIEW QUESTIONS

 

1. What is professional ethics?

-It is a field wherein professionals applied the concept of ethics concerned with moral issues that affect computer professionals. It is also the principle, perhaps even exclusive, perspective through which ethical issues involving the computing field to be examined.

 

2. What is a computer professional?

-Is anyone employed in the computer/ information technology or information/communication fields? They are also the one who are professionally responsible in improving, developing good communication and technology nowadays in the industry of computers and information technology.

 

3. Do computer professionals have special moral responsibilities that ordinary computer users do not have? If so, what are some of those special responsibilities?

-Yes, of course they have. One of the best example of this was the 10 commandments of computer ethics in which describes, shows, or commanded that as a computer professionals in your field you should know what are the ethical responsibilities and moral responsibilities that you have.

 

4. Why is it useful to limit our discussion of moral issues affecting computer professionals to issues affecting software engineers and engineering teams, computer science instructor, and IT support professionals, as opposed to professionals such as lawyers and accountants who also use computers and why may work for computer organizations?

 

All profession and all professionals in the different industries do have different principles, beliefs, responsibilities, and strategies as to how they will understand morality, issues on morality, specially moral issues regarding computer/technology. Because we cannot deny the fact that even this field do have moral issues that really exist.

 

5. How do Gotterbarn, Miller, and Rogerson propose that we define the profession of software engineering? Who is included in a software engineering team?

 

- A computer professional could be defined in a way that would exclude professionals in the fields of communications and library science, yet still include professionals whose computer-specific job descriptions extend beyond software engineering per se. In a software engineering team, they can be thought of those people who contribute direct participation o the analysis, specification, design, development process. These people believes that because of software engineers and their teams are responsible for developing safety-critical systems, they have significant opportunities to do good or cause harm, enable others to do good or cause harm, and influence others to do good or cause harm. Therefore, Gotterbarn suggest that the role and responsibilities involved in the development of safety-critical systems  is a different factor - Gotterbarn(2001).

 

6. What are professional codes of ethics, and what functions do these codes serve?

 

-Professional code may be styled as a code of professional responsibility, which may dispense with difficult issues of what behavior is "ethical". et out the procedures to be used in specific ethical situations and delineate the procedures to determine whether a violation of the code of ethics occurred and, if so, what remedies should be imposed.

 

7. List some of the benefits of professional code of ethics. Describe some of the criticism of these professional codes.

 

-Helpful guidance and advice for individual in confronting situations that is morally complex. It also educates by informing members of a profession about their ethical responsibilities and lastly these codes have disciplinary or penal functions.

8. Why does John Ladd believes that professional codes of ethics rest on a series of errors that are both intellectual and moral? Describe the arguments he uses to support his position.

 

John Ladd has criticized ethical codes on slightly diff. grounds, arguing that these codes rest on a series of confusions that are both intellectual and moral. The role of ethics in general, he argues, is to appraise, criticize, and even defend the principles, rules, and regulations, but not to dictate or punish them.

 

9. Explain Don Gotterbarn's three-fold distinction: codes of ethics, codes of conduct, and codes of practice. Do Gotternbarn's distinctions help to eliminate any of the criticisms that have been raised against professional codes?

 

Don Gotternbarn’s describes code of ethics as "aspirational" because they often serve as mission statements for the profession and can thus provide vision objectives. Codes of conduct, on contrary, address the professional and the professional's attitude and behavior. Finally, code of practice relate to operational activities within a profession. And yes, that Gotternbarn’s do help to eliminate any of the criticisms that have been raised against professional codes.

 

10. How does the IEEE-CS/ACM Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice improve on earlier professional codes?

 

They come up first in evaluating and analyzing whether the code that they implemented before do have great effect in their profession and as well as to the professionals specifically software engineers. And so after this they tried to improve and think of code of ethics in a way that this would be better than the before and continue to give change and development not only internally but externally as well.

 

11. Do computer professionals have presumed, or prima facie, obligation to loyalty to their employers?

 

I think it’s a yes. Because based on this reading there are some professionals who do not believe that loyalty is an obligation. But we cannot deny the fact that still as an employer it is your will to provide or to give your loyalty to your employer because this will show respect and trust for both of you.

 

12. Describe the arguments by Ronal Duska and John Ladd regarding employee loyalty.

 

Ronald Duska argues that in employment contexts, the question of loyalty arises only in special relationships that are based on mutual enrichment. In a relationship that pursues self interests, the notion of loyalty does not apply. John Ladd believes that for corporations, loyalty can only be in one direction. He argues that a corporation cannot be loyal to its employee because the corporation goals must be competitively linked to benefits employees bring to corporation. A corporation can be good to employees only because it is good or business that is it is in company’s own interest.

 

13. What exactly is whistle-blowing? Acc. to Michael Martin, what are the three general approaches that have been taken in analysis of whistle-blowing cases?

 

The expression “blowing the whistle” comes from the effort by individuals to “get the public’s attention”. According to Michael Martin, the three general approaches that have been taken in the analysis of the whistle-blowing cases are:

·         Condemned as an action taken by disloyal trouble makers who rat on their companies and undermine teamwork based on the hierarchy of authority within the corporation.

·         Regarded as a tragedy to be avoided (through it may sometimes be a “necessary evil”)

·         Affirmed unequivocally as an obligation that is paramount in certain circumstances where it overrides all other considerations, whatever the sacrifice involved in meeting it.

 

14. Describe De George's criteria for determining when one is required to blow the whistle as opposed to when one is permitted to do so. Are De George's criteria useful in making this disticntion?

 

De George has offered specific conditions for when an engineer is permitted to blow the whistle and obliged to do so.

·         The harm that will be done by the product to the public is serious and considerable.

·         The engineers have made their concerns known to their superiors

·         The engineers have received no satisfaction from their immediate supervisors, and they have exhausted the channels available within the corporation, including going to the board of directors.

·         The engineers have documented evidence that would convince a reasonable, impartial observer that his view of the situation is correct and the company policy is wrong.

·         There is strong evidence that making the information public will in fact prevent the threatened serious harm.

 

Based on what I have read, YES the criteria is very useful in making distinctions.

 

15. In which ways do Gene James and Kenneth Alpern disagree with De George's model for whitsle-blowing?

 

Gene James believes that De George’s conditions that require blowing a whistle are too lenient. James suggests that an individual has a moral obligation to blow a whistle even when only three conditions of De George are met. Kenneth Alpern on the other hand, argues that De George’s model lets engineers off too easily from their obligation to blow the whistle.

16. Describe John Ladd's argument in defense of De George's position on whistle -blowing.

 

Gene James believes that De George’s conditions that require to blow a whistle are too lenient. James suggests that an individual has a moral obligation to blow a whistle even when only three conditions of De George are met. Kenneth Alpern argues that De George’s model lets engineers off too easily from their obligation to blow the whistle.

 

17. Why does Helen Nisssenbaum believe that the notion of accountability has been "systematically undermindes in the computer age"? How does she distinguish between accountability and responsibility?

 

She distinguishes between responsibility and accountability by suggesting that responsibility is only a part of what is covered “robust and intuitive notion of accountability” Accountability is a broader concept than responsibility. In computing concept, accountability means “…there will be someone, or several people to answer not only for malfunctions in life critical systems that cause or risk grave injuries and cause of infrastructure and large monetary loses.”

 

18. What does Nissenbaum mean by "problem of many hands" in a computing context?

 

Computer software is usually developed in large organizational settings. Many individuals are involved in making software, not just the programmer. If something goes wrong somewhere or causes harm, it is difficult to determine who to blame because of the many people involved.

 

19. Why does Nissenbaum believe that it is important to distinguish between moral accountability and legal liability?

 

Because this will help you of course distinguish between moral accountability and legal accountability.

 

20. Acc. to Don Gotterbarn, what is required for a model of risk analysis to be adequate in the software development process for safety-critical systems?

 

Gotternbarn argues that a model of risk assessment based solely on cost effectiveness ad using only criteria such as budget and schedule narrow. He also noted that the only stakeholders typically given a consideration in risk assessment models for software development are the software developers and customers. Gotternbarn concludes that unless adequate model for software dev is framed, we may be doomed to experiencing future computer malfunctions. What is required though is that it has to withstand or rather eliminate the two failure/defects in current models, which are 1. an overly narrow conception of risk and 2. a limited notion of system stakeholders.