Ethical, Moral, Environmental and Legal Issues Surrounding Cell Phones - Coursework Example

running head: Ethical, Moral, Environmental & Legal Issues Surrounding Cell Phones Ethical, Moral, Environmental & Legal Issues Surrounding Cell Phones Student’s Name Teacher’s Name Course No. [Pick the date] Contents Introduction 3 Moral Dimensions & Invasion of Policy 3 Use of Cell Phones for Sexting and Pornography 4 Legal Consequences 4 Harassment & Bullying 6 Distracted Driving Due to Cell Phones 6 Distraction in Educational & Work Settings 7 Environmental Effects of Cell Phones 8 Cell Phones’ Impacts on Human Health 9 Conclusion 10 References 11 Introduction With the advent of cell phones in human society, the overall landscape of socializing has changed. Every day dozens of new mobile phones are coming out which are not only acting as a replacement of heavy computing machines such as laptops, computers, cameras, stereos etc but have also managed to provide a substitute for a human contact. Now, by pressing a single button, we are able to contact the desired person instead of actually meeting them. Although cell phones have provided a great deal of convenience and have assembled many applications and devices in a simple box but the ethical and moral implications arising out of this excessive use of cell phones cannot be ignored. Recent researches have shown that cell phones have given rise to many ethical problems related to exchange of adult material resulting in sexting, child and adult pornography. In addition to that, there are also studies supporting the notion that cell phones usage has serious consequences during driving. Many countries and states have devised several laws which prohibit exchange of nude/ semi-naked material and use of cell phone for bullying, harassment, and cell phone use’ during driving however a policy model is required which would keep ensure the use of cell phone for unethical activities. Moral Dimensions & Invasion of Policy With the use of cell phones comes moral responsibility of information rights, property rights and obligations, accountability and control, system quality and quality of life. Due to excessive use of cell phones, one of the fundamental moral comprises arise from invasion of privacy. It is a right of every individual to be free from surveillance or interference from individuals, organizations and state and have complete control over information regarding him. In U.S., individual privacy is protected by various laws such as First Amendment (freedom of speech), Fourth Amendment (unreasonable search and seizure), Additional federal statues (e.g. Privacy Act of 1974) etc (Lauden & Traver, 2012). There is an extensive research performed on cell phones and ethical issues arising out of it. Other than breach of privacy, forced intimacy, inane conversations, inappropriate timings of usage, and disregard for immediate others are some of the major issues considered as violation of etiquettes (Johnson, 2003). Use of Cell Phones for Sexting and Pornography Other than the basic ethical dilemmas mentioned above, another area which requires immediate attention is the use of cell phones for the purpose of exchanging pornography, sexting, sex-oriented tele-conversation and adult pornography. Most of ethical issues and moral complications arising out of the use of cell phones involve exchange of material which may fall under the category of sexual display and this exchange of sexual material can have serious legal consequences. Where a major percentage of teenage population owns cell phones without parents’ supervision, exchange of nude pictures is not an extraordinary act. According to a survey conducted by Pew Research centre, 15% of the selected population involving children and teenagers within the age range of 12-17 years admitted sending and receiving naked pictures (Terril, 2012). With an increase in the use of cell phones in teenagers and adolescents during these three years, this percentage is expected to be higher. Legal Consequences Other than the moral issues arising out of sexting, legal complications cannot be underestimated or ignored. The US law does not exempt a teenager from being held liable for holding and disseminating child pornography and the accused teenager can be charged with various clauses such as delinquent acts of Possession of Child Pornography, a Class D felony, and Child Exploitation, a Class C felony (Terril, 2012). The criminal offense becomes even more severe if the picture is related to someone under the age of 18. Sending, receiving and asking for nude pictures, is considered as a crime and is subjected to punishment through child pornography laws (Cornell, 2012). Furthermore, requiring someone to send their pictures in a harassing manner, and capturing and sharing someone’s nude pictures without permission is also constituted as a crime without any age limit clause. Excessive use of cell phones has given rise to even higher threats as the teenagers and adolescents involved in sexting and pornography are mainly not aware of the social repercussions. In most of the cases, the nude pictures are shared with the known individuals and related breach of trust coupled with social harassment and embarrassment may lead to extreme depression. Other than this, possession of these nude pictures by sexual predators and their usage for illicit purposes has its own set of consequences (NCYLC, 2012). There is an increasing trends in cases filed related to sexting which have gained the attention of general public in United States. Careful analysis has revealed that exchange of sexually suggestive pictures is used as a mode of making one’s self more attractive to the peers or viewers of these images. Where adults are mostly aware of the consequences and are expected to be mature enough to predict the repercussions of such behavior, teenagers are more subject to peer pressure and are not aware of the social and legal outcomes. Pew Survey conducted by Lenhart et al. (2010) showed that most of the elder teenagers received nude or half-naked pictures which may fall under the category of child pornography, from their juniors. Harassment & Bullying In addition to sexting, harassment and bullying is also considered as another ethical implication of cell phones. Pew survey related to cell phone harassment showed that 26% of the subjects had faced this form of bullying through text messages and calls. Also, it was found that this medium of conversation is often used to transmit messages that individuals prefer not to deliver face-to-face (Lenhart et al., 2010). Where serious concerns have been shown for sexting and child pornography in teenagers and adolescents, it is important to note that similar behavioral patterns in adults also have serious ramifications. The possible consequences can be sexual predation and infringements of other adults’ privacy resulting in legal action. Distracted Driving Due to Cell Phones Further ethical issues arising out of cell phone usage involves distracted driving. According to survey conducted by Lenhart et al. (2010), more than 54% of the teenage population owning cell phones performs receiving and sending of text messages during driving whereas 34% perform tele-conversations during driving. These statistics are even higher in adults since the number of adult citizens using cell phones includes the working class as well as house wives and elders. Sending and receiving spam messages is another negative aspect of cell phone usage. There are various laws prohibiting use of cell phones during driving however with the advent of smart phones, statistics have shown an increasing trend in texting and calling during driving. During driving, the audio, visual, physical and cognitive distraction may result in sever accidents (SWOV, 2010). Through the study conducted by Institute of Road Safety Netherland, it was found that possible distractions by increased features of cell phones leads to lesser control during driving, slower reaction to traffic environment and increased mental effort (SWOV, 2010; WHO, 2012). Where hands-free devices are considered to be safer as compared to hand-held mobile phones, there are no empirical evidences showing their effectiveness in avoidance of on-road accidents. In the study conducted by SWOV (2010), it was stressed that “Although in the case of hand-held phoning only one hand is available for the driving task, the most negative characteristic of mobile phones equally applies for hands-free phoning: shifting the focus of attention from the driving task to the conversation. The negative effects on the driving task, such as the increased reaction time, are similar for hand-held and hands-free phoning (Caird et al., 2008) and the crash rate is also similar (McEvoy et al., 2005)”. Hence, drivers using hand-held devices are in a better position of responding to adverse environmental factors. In response to these findings and other meta analysis, many states in United States have banned the use of cell phones for telephonic conversation and texting however the segment on which this ban levies, varies from state to state (GHSA, 2012; PHLR, 2011). Distraction in Educational & Work Settings The research by Lenhart et al. (2010) also indicated that cell phones are used in educational settings for cheating and quick search purposes. It is found that students tend to take lesser interest in bookish information since they have a quick alternative available to them all the time. As a result, the quality of education given in class room settings decreases to a considerable extent. Where educational institutions and corporate organizations are taking measures which would shun sexting and exchange of child and adult pornography, there are various criticisms made on the policy directives. The policies of educational institutions may involve reviewing the cell phones of the teenagers however critics have considered it as equivalent to breach of privacy and instigation of unnecessary stress in teenagers. On the other hand, many organizations have code of conduct which discourages use of cell phone for unethical activities, but effectiveness of these barriers is still questionable. Environmental Effects of Cell Phones Where cell phones have many social evils and psychological threats, its environmental hazards cannot be underestimated. Manufacturing of cell phones require a high amount of energy and it constitutes of various useful metals. Since cell phones’ recycling is a difficult process therefore most of these metals are wasted with this energy used in production causing air contamination. Furthermore, the circuitry of cell phones contains many harmful elements such as Cadmium, mercury, lead etc (Jones, 2012). Cadmium is one of the most toxic substances which have bio-accumulative nature. It is present in the infrared chips and semiconductors used in cell phones. Cell phones also contain lead in their screen. Presence of Lead in humans, animals and plants is highly risky since it has a tendency of accumulation in the living things causing damage to their body functions. In humans, it may cause severe damage to central nervous systems, kidneys and lever. In addition to that, Nickel, Lithium and mercury are present in cell phones batteries. These elements may combine with underground water reservoirs causing contamination and their high reactivity of Lithium can result in underground fires (Jones, 2012). Since Landfills is considered as one of the safest modes of discarding the cell phones, the hazards that it may cause to the ecosystem cannot be neglected. All these elements present in the cell phones can cause severe damage to the lands where they are dumped and also nearby water reservoirs causing extreme contamination which may cause harm to all living things. A simple example of cell phones rays’ hazards is its impact on honey bees. Due to cell phone rays, insects especially honey bees lose their sense of direction and environmental sensitivity which causes them to malfunction, digress from their path and exhibit unnatural behavior. Presence of these extra energy rays in environment can cause severe misbalance in earth’s ecosystem. Cell Phones’ Impacts on Human Health There are various researches conducted in past decade which were intended to examine the impacts of cell phone use over human health. Cell phones emit infrared and X-Rays of varied intensities. These researches have developed findings through extensive analysis that there is a progressive relationship between brain damage (i.e. cancer), Leukemia, fertility, memory loss and behavioral changes in humans. Some of these researches have also shown that using cell phones is more injurious to children since there immunity is low as compared to adults. Although report of WHO (2006) has concluded that there is no empirical evidence supporting this relationship between human health and cell phone use but it does recognize the fact that cell phones do emit rays which cause minor changes in DNA. Therefore, the hazard is considered to be small but does require precautions. Where the hazard is considered to be small, a high-intensity exposure to these rays for longer duration may have considerable impacts on human health. Furthermore, there are various studies conducted on the subject matter constituting of years’ research and adequate sample data which are difficult to ignore (Chow, 2008). Conclusion Cell phone is surely a blessing in disguise. From communication to computation of data, cell phone is a solution to every human need. However, these small devices have their own sets of threats giving rise to ethical issues and moral complications. Researches have shown that with increase in use of cell phones, an increasing trend in exchange of nude material (sexting and pornography) is observed which has its social and legal consequences. Other than sexting, distracted driving caused by cell phones is considered as a fundamental cause for road fatalities and casualties. Cell phones have limited the use of human contact reducing it to words and human voice, and have also diverted the attention of public from literature and education to quick search. Lastly, it also bears high-intensity hazards to natural environment and human health resulting in fatal diseases and malfunctions. Although states and institutions have attempted to control these ethical issues with the help of laws and policies but a strong policy structure is still required for a permanent solution. References Chow, R. (2008), Three possible health dangers of long-term cell phone use, Retrieved 30 November 2012 from http://www.naturalnews.com/024807_health_cell_phone_cancer.html#ixzz2DkSGOsFO Cornell University Law School. (2012), 18 USC § 2256 - Definitions for Chapter, Retrieved 28 November 2012 from Http://Www.Law.Cornell.Edu/Uscode/Text/18/2256 Governor Highway Safety Association. (2012), Cell phone and texting laws. Retrieved 28 November 2012 from http://www.ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html Johnson, C. E. (2003). Aural space violations and unwanted intimacy: The ethics of cell phone use. Paper presented at the National Communication Association convention, Miami Beach, FL. Johns, E. (2012), Cell phones and the environment, Retrieved 30 November 2012 from http://www.greeniacs.com/GreeniacsArticles/Consumer-Products/Cell-Phones-and-the-Environment.html Lauden, K.C. & Traver, C.G. (2011), Managing information systems, 12th ed. Prentice Hall. Lenhart, A. Ling, R. & Purcell, K. (2010), Teens and Mobile Phones, Retrieved 28 November 2012 from http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2010/Teens-and-Mobile-Phones/Chapter-5/The-cell-phone-has-become-a-new-venue-for-harassment-and-bullying-of-teens.aspx National Children’s and Youth Law Centre. (2012), Sexting, Retrieved 28 November 2012 from http://www.lawstuff.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/14888/Sexting-fact-sheet.pdf Public Health Law Research. (2011), Distracted driving laws, Retrieved 28 November 2012 from http://publichealthlawresearch.org/data-set/distracted-driving-laws SWOV Institute of road safety research. (2010), SWOV Fact Sheet, Retrieved 28 November 2012 from http://www.swov.nl/rapport/Factsheets/UK/FS_Mobile_phones.pdf Terril, J. (2012), Cell phones and “sexting”, Retrieved 28 November 2012 from http://www.fortwaynereader.com/story.php?uid=2027 World Health Organization. (2006), What effects do mobile phones have on people’s health, Retrieved 30 November 2012 from http://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/74463/E89486.pdf World Health Organization. (2012), Mobile phone use: A growing problem of driver distraction, Retrieved 28 November 2012 from http://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/publications/road_traffic/distracted_driving_summary.pdf Read More