Digital Ethics

Some buttons, such as the door-close button on an elevator, are mere artifices — placebos that promote an illusion of control but in reality do not work.

Office culture is only part of the problem.

More comfortable online than out partying, post-Millennials are safer, physically, than adolescents have ever been. But they’re on the brink of a mental-health crisis.

It's an unexpected side effect of globalization: problems that once would have stayed local—say, a bank lending out too much money—now have consequences worldwide. But still, countries operate independently, as if alone on the planet. Policy advisor Simon Anholt has dreamed up an unusual scale to get governments thinking outwardly: The Good Country Index. In a riveting and funny talk, he answers the question, "Which country does the most good?" The answer may surprise you (especially if you live in the US or China).

Outputs are more easily measured, but less important.

Nonprofits have to prove that they make a difference with their programs. But what do all these terms mean? And how do we use them?

We derive ethical truth with the same method we use to derive truth about anything; we ask good questions. If we look at the scientific method, it requires a hypothesis, a question or statement th…

In this article we develop a taxonomy of behavioral policy measures proposed by Thaler and Sunstein (2008). Based on this taxonomy, we discuss the ethical legitimacy of these measures. First, we explain two common reservations against nudges (choice architecture) rooted in utilitarian and Kantian ethics. In addition to wellbeing, we identify freedom of action and freedom of will (autonomy) as relevant ethical criteria. Then, using practical examples, we develop a taxonomy that classifies nudges according to the psychological mechanisms they use and separately discuss the legitimacy of sever...

A city councilman is pushing to make public the code behind city decisions on everything from school assignments to trash collection.

Trump vann valet tack vare en effektiv digital kampanj, ”Project Alamo”. Med falska nyheter, massiv datainhämtning och medveten påverkan av motståndarna.

You owe it to your users to design responsibly.

We’d like to see technology become more responsible — in terms of how it’s developed, how it works for users, and how it affects society.

The thousands of Wells Fargo low-wage employees who defrauded customers likely knew how it felt to face unfair overdraft fees or a deteriorating credit rating. So why did they do it?

Too many designers, argues Thomas Wendt, believe that doing empathy = doing good design. But empathy isn't a substitute for ethics.

The area of ethics in user experience design ranges from providing complete freedom for the users, up to making all the choices for them.

Five questions for designers

As computer programmers write code that runs everything from airplanes to pharmacy orders, there's a serious need for ethical training and guidelines.

Would you take on a client who’s business was ethically appalling to you? How far will you stretch the truth to help a client sell their products or services? When taking inspiration from another site for one you’re designing how much of that other site gets incorporated into your design and how close does your […]

Tristan Harris, a former product philosopher at Google, is determined to find the answer.

A talk with Jonathan Shariat, a Silicon-Valley based director of product & design. Most conversations about the value of user experience (UX) are in relation to what we can get from it: Supercharge conversions! Boost repeat business! Increase form completion rates! These things aren’t actually

"Success is measured by number of downloads and star ratings on the app store."

An incubation space for new standards and solutions, certifications and codes of conduct, and consensus building for ethical implementation of intelligent technologies

“All the goodness and the heroisms will rise up again, then be cut down again and rise up. It isn’t that the evil thing wins — it never will — but that it doesn’t die.”

Part of our Human x Design series, a look at how we grapple with the complex nature of designing for people.

I was in elementary school, watching the TV live, when the Challenger exploded. My classmates and I were stunned and confused by what we…

The human brain is a complex mass of energy designed to respond to the world around it, and more specifically, designed to make effective…