Introduction
One of the key principles of ethics can be found in the underlying ideas of ethical theories, which provide a differential and diverse range of perspectives on the notion of morality, ethicality, and goodness. The given assessment of ethical, theoretical frameworks will primarily focus on the ideas of utilitarianism, virtue ethics, social contract theory, and deontology. The emphasis will be put on data processing from raw data to consumable one.
Utilitarianism
The theoretical framework of utilitarianism is well-known and simplistic in its conceptuality. It states that an action is morally good and ethical if its benefits outweigh its harms. It should be noted that “there are two types of utilitarianism, act utilitarianism and rule utilitarianism,” where “act utilitarianism subscribes precisely to the definition of utilitarianism—a person performs the acts that benefit the most people, regardless of personal feelings or the societal constraints such as laws” (Chonko, 2020, p. 2). However, “rule utilitarianism takes into account the law and is concerned with fairness” (Chonko, 2020, p. 2). For example, under act utilitarianism, stealing can be justified as morally good if it benefits ten people and harms one individual. In the case of data processing, as shown in Figure 1 below, the ethical element of the entire process is determined by whether or not the consumable data’s benefits outweigh any potential ramifications. The data manipulation stage or data disclosure stage can be conducted in an inaccurate manner in order to alter the consumable data, but if the latter results in more people being happier, such interventions are morally good. For instance, a tech company can ethically violate the privacy of its users in order to improve their customer experience if the benefits of the latter outweigh the harms of the former. In other words, utilitarianism is focused on the notion of tradeoff or compromise and is merely guided by the final result.
Virtue Ethics
The theoretical framework of virtue ethics focuses on the virtues of a person himself or herself. It states that “the virtue ethical theory judges a person by his/her character rather than by an action that may deviate from his/her normal behavior” (Chonko, 2020, p. 2). In other words, the action is not factored in when determining whether or not something is morally good and ethical. It is the actor of action who makes the act good or not (Chonko, 2020). For example, an extreme case would be if a saint kills another person, where the act of killing becomes good because it was performed by a good person. The judgment is made on the core characteristics of an actor and not action itself. In the case of data processing, as shown in Figure 1, under the framework of virtue ethics, the ethicality of data manipulation, disclosure, and analysis is determined by the inherent characteristics of an organization or individual conducting them, not the methods used. For example, if Facebook were an inherently evil company, whereas Google was an inherently good company, the latter’s data processing would always be ethical, and the former’s data processing would always be morally wrong, even if they both use the same methods. Therefore, virtue ethics makes its judgments of morality and ethicality on the basis of an actor’s virtues and inherent characteristics.
Deontology
The theoretical framework of deontology puts the emphasis on the action itself regardless of its outcome or actor. Therefore, “a person will follow his or her obligations to another individual or society because upholding one’s duty is what is considered ethically correct” (Chonko, 2020, p. 2). In other words, the concept of deontology is highly dependent on the idea of duty and adherence to obligations, as well as the responsibilities of respecting another person and acting morally. For example, an act of killing is always unethical and immoral under deontology, regardless if it is used to protect one’s nation, family, or brethren against a truly evil agent. In the case of data processing as shown in Figure 1, under the framework of deontology, data manipulation, data disclosure, and analysis can be ethical only if the methods used are ethical as well, and the state and outcome of consumable data are not relevant alongside the actor itself. For instance, a tech company might release highly sensitive data, which was properly analyzed and manipulated, to the public and harm the latter and cause a major disturbance in a nation. The tech company’s action would still be considered morally good and ethical despite its consequences.
Social Contract Theory
The ethical concept of social contract theory is focused on the notion that ethicality is established by social contract or agreement within a society or group of individuals. In other words, one cannot determine whether something is good or not since it depends on how a particular society agrees to view such actions or actors (Moehler, 2018). For example, one community can view abortion as morally wrong, whereas another community perceives it as a woman’s right. In the case of data processing, as shown in Figure 1, under the framework of social contract theory, the ethicality of data manipulation, data disclosure, and analysis is determined by a society in which these procedures are conducted. For instance, a tech company might severely violate its users’ privacy for the purposes of improving customer experience, and this action can be considered morally good in one nation, whereas another country would consider it outrageous.
Discussion
There are a number of ethical problems associated with data processing. It is data collection and use, where the concern of people is what will happen to the data once it has been obtained and what the limits of its use will be. In order to earn the trust of customers, companies need to indicate all ways in which data is used in a user agreement without allowing ambiguous language. In addition, this is a transfer of data to third parties, where confidential data must be provided to other companies or individuals without any indication of the identity of their owner. It is also necessary to notify the client about the transfer of his data. By addressing ethical problems at an earlier stage, action must be taken to either alleviate the problem or eliminate it. Organizations must implement codes of ethics and ethics that cover the entire data lifecycle, including acquisition, preparation, processing, and aggregation.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are a number of major theoretical frameworks which are designed to provide perspective on what is considered morally and ethically good. Utilitarianism primarily focuses on the outcome, where the action is good if its benefits outweigh its harms. Virtue ethics focuses on an actor and its inherent characteristics, which means a good person will always do good deeds. Deontology is centered on duty and actions themselves, which means that an action is good or bad regardless of its outcome or actor. Social contract theory views ethicality as a byproduct of the social agreement in a particular society.
References
Chonko, L. (2020). Ethical theories [PDF document]. Web.
Moehler, M. (2018). Diversity, stability, and social contract theory. Philosophical Studies, 176, 3285–3301. Web.