Computer Ethics in the Computer Science Curriculum - Courses and Textbooks in “Theoretical” Computer Ethics - The Research Center on Computing & Society

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Terrell Ward Bynum

Courses and Textbooks in “Theoretical” Computer Ethics

If one prefers to offer a course in “theoretical” computer ethics, it is always possible to use two textbooks – one in “para” computer ethics and one in “theoretical” computer ethics. Indeed, I intend to recommend below that one begin a course with “para” computer ethics (either from a textbook or other supplemental materials), even if the course will eventually become very theoretical.

Textbooks in applied ethics usually start with a chapter or two of theory. Later chapters then apply those theories to concepts or problems in specific subject matter like medicine, business, computing or the environment. Most applied ethics textbooks have this “theory-first” structure, because applied ethics courses traditionally begin with theory and consider specific cases later.

Such courses can be reasonably successful (I have had some success with them myself). Nevertheless my own experience indicates that a better approach is to begin with realistic cases and scenarios, rather than theory. After all, at the start of a course most students relate better to specific cases than to abstract theories and definitions. And by choosing cases which raise troubling ethical and social questions, the teacher causes the student to “feel the grip of a problem” and long for clarification or guidance. At that point, once the student feels a need, the introduction of theory is welcome, rather than a frightening or “boring” development. In a “theoretical” computer ethics course, therefore, I recommend that the class begin with “para” computer ethics materials – especially provocative cases and scenarios – then move on to “theoretical” considerations.

Several “theoretical” textbooks have been available since the mid 1980s, and publishers are starting to bring more to market. (I describe only two example textbooks here.) For those interested in a philosophical approach, Deborah Johnson’s Computer Ethics (Prentice-Hall, 1985) has been the standard textbook across the country. For a social science approach, Judith Perrolle’s Computers and Social Change: Information, Property and Power (Wadsworth, 1987) offers an impressive sociological tour de force. (See “Selected Bibliography” below for other textbook suggestions.)

Deborah Johnson’s Computer Ethics begins with two introductory chapters: one on philosophers’ ethical theories (utilitarianism and Kantianism) and one on professional ethics. In addition, there are four computer-specific chapters covering: liability for computer malfunctions, computers and privacy, computers and power, and ownership of software.

Johnson’s book is very clearly written, and students find it easy to understand and use. It contains effective applications of philosophical theories, like John Locke’s account of property or the ethical theory of utilitarianism. As a work of “theoretical” computer ethics, the book is most successful in Chapter 4 where James Rachels’ analysis of the concept of privacy is effectively used to shed light upon issues in computing and privacy.

A shortcoming of Johnson’s book is its brevity. Many of today’s “hot” topics are not even included – topics like computer “viruses” and other malicious software, computer-human interface questions (ergonomics), replacement of human decision-making by computers, using computers to empower the disabled, using computers in war, and so on. Because of this, the book is rather dated. Nevertheless, appropriately supplemented with a second text or recent journal articles, Johnson’s Computer Ethics remains an effective teaching tool – the best philosophical text on the market.

Judith Perrolle’s Computers and Social Change (Perrolle 1987) is intended to provide “a framework for understanding the social context and consequences of information technology, including the role of information in human history.” (Preface, xvii) It is divided into four sections, which Perrolle describes as follows:

The first examines the social context of information technology, providing a conceptual framework for understanding the computer as an information-processing tool capable of producing enormous changes in human life far beyond the immediate purposes for which it was designed.
The second part of the book considers immediate effects of computers by examining the subject of ergonomics – the human/technology interface.
The third part of the book analyzes the computer transformation of work.
The fourth section of the book deals with the computer’s effects on information, property, and power in democratic institutions.

This book is rich with ideas, theories, concepts and analyses. There are subsections on a wide variety of topics, including for example the scientific study of information, the computer as a tool, theories of social change, computers and capitalism, the psychology of human/computer interaction, computer-aided socialization, the meaning of work, office automation, expert systems in the professions, information as property, computers and social control, information and the public interest, the social future of information, and so on.

Most computer science undergraduates will find Perrolle’s book to be very challenging, but also very rewarding and worth the struggle. In my judgment, the book is best suited to students late in their college careers, when they are more mature and are likely to have had some courses in history and social theory. Of course, there are other quality textbooks besides the above-described ones (see the selected bibliography below), and new texts are coming onto the market. A “definitive” textbook that captures most of the market has not yet been published. The next generation of texts will likely combine both the “para” and “theoretical” levels; and they will employ more than one discipline (for example, philosophy, sociology and law).

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