Abstract
The purpose of this essay is to determinewhat exactly is meant by the claimcomputer ethics is unique, a position thatwill henceforth be referred to as the CEIUthesis. A brief sketch of the CEIU debate is provided,and an empirical case involving a recentincident of cyberstalking is briefly consideredin order to illustrate some controversialpoints of contention in that debate. To gain aclearer understanding of what exactly isasserted in the various claims about theuniqueness of computer ethics, and to avoidmany of the confusions currently associatedwith the term ``unique'', a precise definition ofthat term is proposed. We then differentiatetwo distinct and radically differentinterpretations of the CEIU thesis, based onarguments that can be found in the relevantcomputer ethics literature. The twointerpretations are critically analyzed andboth are shown to be inadequate in establishingthe CEIU thesis. We then examine and reject twoassumptions implicit in arguments advanced bothby CEIU advocates and their opponents. Inexposing and rejecting these assumptions, wesee why it is not necessary to accept theconclusions reached by either side in thisdebate. Finally, we defend the view thatcomputer ethics issues are both philosophicallyinteresting and deserving of our attention,regardless of whether those issues might alsohappen to be unique ethical issues.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
T.W. Bynum. Global Information Ethics and the Information Revolution. In T.W. Bynum and J.H. Moor, editors, The Digital Phoenix: How Computers are Changing Philosophy, pp. 274–289. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishers, 1998.
T.W. Bynum. The Development of Computer Ethics as a Philosophical Field of Study, Australian Journal of Professional and Applied Ethics, 1(1): 1–29, 1999.
T.W. Bynum. A Very Short History of Computer Ethics, APA Newsletter on Philosophy and Computers, 99(2): 163–165, Spring 2000.
T.W. Bynum. Ethics and the Information Revolution. In R.A. Spinello and H.T. Tavani, editors, Readings in CyberEthics, pp. 9–25. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 2001.
L. Floridi. Does Information Have a Moral Worth in Itself? In L.D. Introna, editor, Proceedings of the Conference on Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry: CEPE98, pp. 144–158. London School of Economics, 1998.
L. Floridi. Information Ethics: On the Philosophical Foundation of Computer Ethics. Ethics and Information Technology, 1(1): 37–56, 1999a.
L. Floridi. Philosophy and Computing: An Introduction. New York: Routledge, 1999b.
L. Floridi. Open Problems in the Philosophy of Information (The Herbert A. Simon Lecture on Computing and Philosophy). Presented at the 16th Annual Conference on Computing and Philosophy (CAP 2001), Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, August 10, 2001.
L. Floridi and J.W. Sanders. Artificial Evil and the Foundations of Computer Ethics. Ethics and Information Technology, 3(1): 55–66, 2001a.
L. Floridi and J.W. Sanders. Computer Ethics: Mapping the Foundationalist Debate. Ethics and Information Technology, Vol. 4, No.1, 2002.
B. Gert. Morality: Its Nature and Justification. New York, Oxford University Press, 1998.
B. Gert. Common Morality and Computing. Ethics and Information Technology, 1(1): 57–64, 1999.
K. Gorniak-Kocikowska. The Computer Revolution and the Problem of Global Ethics. In T.W. Bynum and S. Rogerson, editors, Global Information Ethics. Special Issue of Science and Engineering Ethics, 2(2): 177–190, 1996.
D. Gotterbarn and S. Rogerson. Computer Ethics: The Evolution of the Uniqueness Revolution. In M.J. van den Hoven, editor, Proceedings of the Conference on Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry: CEPE97, pp. 151–159. Rotterdam, The Netherlands, University of Erasmus Press, 1998.
S.F. Grodzinsky and H.T. Tavani. Is Cyberstalking a Special Kind of Computer Crime? In T.W. Bynum, et al., editors, Proceedings of the ETHICOMP 2001 Conference, 2: 73–85. Gdansk, Poland: Mikom Publishers, 2001.
G.D. Johnson. Ethics Online. Communications of the ACM, 40(1): 60–65, 1997.
G.D. Johnson. Sorting Out the Uniqueness of Computer-Ethical Issues. In L. Floridi, editor, Computer Ethics. Special Issue of Etica and Politica, 2 (Available online at http://www.univ.trieste.it/~dipfilo/etics_e_politica/1999_2/homepage.html.), 1999.
G.D. Johnson. The Future of Computer Ethics. In G. Collste, editor, Ethics in the Age of Information Technology, pp. 17–31. Linkoping, Sweden: Center for Applied Ethics, 2000.
G.D. Johnson. Computer Ethics. 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2001.
H. Jonas. The Imperative of Responsibility: In Search for an Ethics of the Technological Age. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 1984.
W. Maner. Unique Ethical Problems in Information Technology. In T.W. Bynum and S. Rogerson, editors, Global Information Ethics. Special Issue of Science and Engineering Ethics, 2(2): 137–154, 1996.
W. Maner. Is Computer Ethics Unique? In L. Floridi, editor, Computer Ethics. Special Issue of Etica and Politica, 2 (Available online: http//:www.univ.trieste.it/~dipfilo/etics_e_politica/1999_2/homepage.html.), 1999.
I.R. Mason. Four Ethical Issues of the Information Age. MIS Quarterly, 10(1): 5–12, 1986.
D. Michelfelder. Our Moral Condition in Cyberspace. Ethics and Information Technology, 3(1): 147–152, 2000.
C. Mitchham. Thinking Ethics in Technology: The Hennebach Lectures and Papers 1995-1996. Colorado: Colorado School of Mines, 1997.
H.J. Moor. What is Computer Ethics? Metaphilosophy, 16(4): 266–275, October 1985.
H.J. Moor. Towards a Theory of Privacy for the Information Age. Computers and Society, 27(3): 27–32, 1997.
H.J. Moor. Reason, Relativity, and Responsibility in Computer Ethics. Computers and Society, 28(1): 14–21, 1998a.
H.J. Moor. If Aristotle Were a Computing Professional. Computers and Society, 28(3): 13–16, 1998b.
H.J. Moor. Just Consequentialism and Computing. Ethics and Information Technology, 1(1): 65–69, 1999a.
H.J. Moor. Using Genetic Information While Protecting the Privacy of the Soul. Ethics and Information Technology, 1(4): 257–263, 1999b.
H.J. Moor. The Future of Computer Ethics: You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet. Ethics and Information Technology, 3(2): 89–91, 2001.
A.R. Spinello and H.T. Tavani. The Internet, Ethical Values, and Conceptual Frameworks. In R.A. Spinello and H.T. Tavani, editors, Readings in CyberEthics, pp. 1–8. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett, 2001.
T.H. Tavani. Internet Search Engines and Personal Privacy. In M.J. van den Hoven, editor, Proceedings of the Conference on Computer Ethics - Philosophical Enquiry: CEPE97, pp. 214–223. Rotterdam, The Netherlands, University of Erasmus Press, 1998.
T.H. Tavani. Privacy and the Internet. In M.M. Placencia, editor, Privacy and the Constitution, pp. 114–125. Hamden, CT: Garland Publishing, 1999.
T.H. Tavani. Defining the Boundaries of Computer Crime: Piracy, Break-Ins, and Sabotage in Cyberspace. Computers and Society, 30(3): 3–9, 2000.
T.H. Tavani. The State of Computer Ethics as a Philosophical Field of Inquiry: Contemporary Perspectives, Future Projections, and Current Resources. Ethics and Information Technology, 3(2): 97–108, 2001.
J. van den Hoven. Computer Ethics and Moral Methodology. Metaphilosophy, 28(3): 234–248, 1997.
J. Weckert. What is New or Unique About Internet Activities? Chap. 3 in D. Langford, editor, Internet Ethics. NewYork: St. Martin's Press, 2000.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tavani, H.T. The uniqueness debate in computer ethics: What exactly is at issue, and why does it matter?. Ethics and Information Technology 4, 37–54 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1015283808882
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1015283808882