Ethics and Morality in Software Development - Literature review Example

? Ethics and morality in software development: A user perspective Ethics and morality in software development According to studies, in people`s lives today, digital devices and majorly computers have become part of them. Some sources suggest that computers have been ‘ever-present’ in so many ways; from offices to homes, everything dependents on computers. The essential part of it the software that runs the computers, because computers cannot run on their own. In this way all aspects of people`s lives are influenced by computers. This means that people have resorted unconsciously on laying their lives and livelihood altogether in the hands of strangers, in the name of software developers. According to findings, it is found that, ethical and moral decisions reached upon by software developers during software development, has an influence on how things and businesses in particular, are done and how people`s lifestyles adapt to this technological development (Salehnia, 2006). Studies concerning the ethical standards in view of the use of computers and its software, centers on critical issues such as; hacking, privacy, copyright protection, and piracy among other issues related to compute use and software. However, studies indicate that, there is little that research indicating if software developers experience ethical and moral decisions opportunities. Because of this, researchers have developed theories that may help in predicting and explaining ethical and moral behaviors. The theories put forward by researchers, as virtue ethics help social scientist and researchers in categorizing the human behavior basing on ethical and moral judgments. In some instances, an ethical theory like, ethics position theory, is used to categorize human behavior in a number of groups, which includes exceptionism, situationism, subjectivism and absolutism. Through this examination of software developers by applying the ethical position theory, was facilitated. This related to the decisions that software developers make during the process of software development, and a few hypothesis relating to it emerged, which guided further research in the area to unveil various issues. Concerning the above introductory discussion it essential to understand issues about ethics and morality in software development, with a user’s perspective. To tackle the issues well, it is critical to understand some factors involved, which is ethics, morality and software development, so that a good basis is formed to unveil the discussion critically. To begin with, software development is the process through which, individuals, a team or accompany invents and then implements the grant plan that helps to create a new software program (Quigley, 2008). The same process is applied in creating a new variety software. In the software development, many steps get involved to achieve the target plan. First, an understanding has to be made about what is needed, in terms of the purpose for developing the software. Secondly, the plan is then developed to create the software required to meet the purpose perceived, this done by writing the code and the bug test prior launching. The process of software development may involve one or many programmers, depending on the complexity of the software require achieving perceived results. At the initial stages, a research is mandatory to gain an understanding of the type of software that the market requires. The research is used to establish the real purpose of the software in meeting the market needs, in line with the overall goals set. On the other hand, ethics is perceived as the study of concept value in terms of right, good, wrong, or bad, as applied to actions concerning a group’s norms and regulations or rules. Basing on ethics and computer systems it is found that, computer software systems lie squarely in the heart of decision-making. This includes issues like data storage and manipulation, and data availability. Concerning the ubiquity of software systems in every area of private and public organizations, signifies that the environment created thereafter needs critical examination through their development and commissioning. Studies indicate that the role played by ethics has increased in recent years concerning software system design. This has led to the emergence of a perspective that leads the way concerning software system and ethics in general; this perspective is categorized as accessibility concerns, privacy, accuracy and property. Studies indicate that there are concerns over the quality of life in relation to the perspective categories. In view of these categories of the perspective, it is essential to consider the impacts that software development and its eventual may have on users and their corporate, cultural, including other institutions. In deployment the examination of this categories, it when the discussion`s hypothesis; ethics and morality in software development, will be reviewed deeply to create a clear understanding of the underlying issues therein. According to findings, a new concept that relates to system development, information ecology concept, which is a new approach that handles matters of system development. This approach views technology in the context of the people, practices and even organizations relating to the system use. In this approach, the focus lies on people and the way they use information. Concerning ethics and morality in line with software development, the quality of life because of system use may take a positive or negative dimension. In this discussion, hoverer it is found that because of stems use, life degrades in a way that raises concerns. Studies show that, the introduction of integrated software systems deskills the employees; this in turn will reduce responsibility, control, and the satisfaction that jobs bring to an individual. Morally, system software use increases stress, fatigue, boredom and depersonalization. A person who is depersonalized, feels inferior and may not produce be morally fit to be productive to the society. This shows that system software use degrades a society`s morals by devaluing an individual involved (Khosrowpour, 2006). Health wise, there are concerns about eyestrain, repetitive strain injury and headaches all resulting from system software use. Eye injury and repeated strain injury may permanently renter a person useless because the injuries may impair am person`s functioning in terms of production. Because software upgrade increase workplace productivity, there is consideration that a time lag exists where workers and the organization have to, take in assimilating the new software or technology in the organizational culture. This is the period when the quality of life influences because of the fact that human beings take longer to adjust to the new settings other than the software; where the old software scrapes quickly paving way for the new upgraded software (Mitchell, 2007). Concerning the many changes in software use, enable workers to increase control, over their work and work products. Again, at the same time, this requires great skills to match the software at hand, this recalls for workers to be retrained. However when the workers cannot afford to upgrade their skills, it is discovered that, productivity, and performance declines. In moral terms, the worker loses confidence and consequently satisfaction declines influencing the backdrop of the worker`s moral standards. According to findings, involvement of computer systems in decision-making is known to evolve morals issues (Dooley, 2001). The evolved moral issues are concerned with, wrong, loyalty, honesty, right and confidentiality among others. Relating to ethics, it is found out that software developers do not offer warrants of substance in relation to faulty software and system failure. This happens because there are no guidelines and standards to direct system developers in line with ethical conducts, and is left to end users to provide a critical feedback that addresses the same. It is with this concern that privacy, accuracy, accessibility, property, and the effects to quality of life need to be addressed well and completely. The other ethical issue is about accessibility. It is known that software access has to have both intellectual and technical components tat associate with physical access. Generally, a person needs to be well equipped to access a hardware and software according his needs. In addition, the person should provide the input and be able to comprehend the data the system presents. For instance, it is needed that the end user should have a browser that is compatible with the material sent to it together with any helper applications, including the hearing content. However when the end user is in a developing country like some in Africa, it becomes critical in relation to the technological issues presented. It is of concern that system development and its implementation does not offer a perceived integration that may have offered alternative knowledge delivery methods. This has resulted to individuals being locked out as appropriate knowledge methods applicable to them are not offered to such affected individuals. This factor locks such individuals from the benefits of such technological advancement within their geographic settings. The other ethical contributory factor in relation to this is that it is not possible to include technology transfer officers and filed personnel as the initial stages were unethical and no room for such issues was created to accommodate it; this means the whole process is more developer centered and less is users thought of. In places where there is more than one official language, for instance Canada, interaction languages like French and English are pound to bring problems in terms of system accessibility (Tavani, 2010). According findings, in most cases, experts are not bilingual, and this brings an ethical problem because some users will automatically be unable to use the software at their disposal simply because the interaction language is way beyond their understanding. In cases where concept meaning, language and culture vary, concerning system reasoning, a number of problems will arise as it requires extra efforts to validate and test systems. This will only be a disadvantage end user (Fishman, 2007). The limitation to the end user also concerns the case where results are presented in a language and using a concept that is beyond the end user because of limited skills and understanding. Privacy is another ethical issues, this involves improper use or access to information, dimmed personal. According to findings in relation to privacy, it is recorded that location privacy, public information, internet technologies and data fusion are software sources of problems when it comes to software design. Ethical issues emerge in relation location privacy in line with GIS systems use. According reports concerning the Aboriginals in Canada, entering theiste location in the GIS system, discloses the forest locations tom unethical use, and the forest practice code of British Columbia offers directive for protection of aboriginals cultural site, which are the forests. This instance shows that the ethical standards were not valued in the software development stage to regard such ethical issues that affect a whole community. On the other hand, regarding the use of autonomous software proxies, which roam the internet, is an ethical concern. Autonomous systems may be situated in an environment, when it acts on it after some time to reveal some factors and affect its outcomes about the future. In addition, another ethical concern comes from the use of push technologies, which depended on the autonomous agents. The push agents pushes specific information in an automatic way into a person`s computer without permission from the owner (Cohn, 2004). Ethically, the recipients may not need or want the information being pushed. This then appears as the forcing of information to someone against his or her will. In general, the end users are disturbed and sometimes harassed emotionally. For instance, internet corporations may rely on commercial advertising through the web to support their industry, and through this website end users get bombarded with graphical images that are disturbing and undesirable tom watch. This graphical image s may alter a person` computer` internet capability and hamper the internet speed while consuming the internet band width without benefiting the involves parties. Finally, ethical issues arise from precision in software use. Many ethical issues revolve around accuracy as it is affected by system output, inputs and the internal process systems. Many ethical issues emerge related to software accuracy because the analyst`s ability to know and predict all states is very low in areas involving complex systems (Cascarino, 2012). Dealing with such issues as the development of appropriate test conditions, documentation of assumptions, system verification and validation, involves many errors, which cause ethical, dilemmas associated with the same. This new errors emerge in the process of resolving an existing error. This has caused software developers sometimes not to issue software warrants after recognizing such errors. It raises an ethical issue because the end user is not informed of the same and he or she may suffer the consequences when the error results to failure after the software is under his ownership, aspects revolving the software development does not consider this problem regarding the suffer the end user may encounter. In conclusion, software developers, do a lot of things without consideration of users. A good relationship may be possible when end users concerns’ or perceived concerns get incorporated in the development stage to enable strong and reliable ethical values to be added. It always beneficial to offer software warrants reducing end user losses. It is important that bilingual systems should be developed more with the perspective of global settings of such developers to gain a competitive advantage in the global scene. This in turn will minimize the risks as well as problems involved d in translation of data across different cultural settings. Good ethical standards should govern the information upload and use on every GIS system to maintain geographical privacy, in view of endangered species and encroached areas to maintain and emphasize on conservation efforts for human survival. References Cascarino, R. (2012). Corporate Fraud and Internal Control + Software Demo: A Framework for Prevention. FNew York, NY: John Wiley & Sons. Cohn, M. (2004). User stories applied:F for agile software development. Washington, DC: Addison-Wesley Professional. Dooley, J. (2001). Software Development and Professional Practice. London: Apress. Fishman, S. (2007). Legal Guide to Web & Software Development. Washington, DC: Nolo. Khosrowpour, (2006). Emerging Trends and Challenges in Information Technology Management. California: Idea Group Inc (IGI). Mitchell, H. (2005).The Intellectual Commons: Toward an Ecology of Intellectual Property. California: Lexington Books. Quigley, M. (2008). Encyclopedia of Information Ethics and Security. Chicago: Idea Group Inc (IGI). Salehnia, A. (2006). Ethical Issues of Information Systems. Michigan: Idea Group Inc (IGI). Tavani, H. (2010). Ethics and Technology: Controversies, Questions, and Strategies for Ethical Computing. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons. Read More