The Relationship Between Computer Ethics, Human Spirituality, And Religion

Literature Review

The topic chosen is how computer ethics relate to human spirituality and religion. Computer ethics refers to the practical philosophy that is concerned about the way computer professionals must take decisions regarding the social and professional conduct. The ethical decision is majorly influenced by the personal code of the individuals, the informal ethical code of conduct existing in the workplace and the exposure to the formal code of ethics (Rehg 2015).

There are various schools of ethical theories that influence the situation and the final outcome. The relativism theory believes that there are no universal moral norms relating to right or wrong. When a person decides what is right and what is wrong then it is known as moral relativism. When the society’s moral belief structure decides what is right and what is wrong then it is known as anthropological relativism. However, deontology states that the moral laws that guide the actions of the individuals are universal in nature (Vaughn 2015).

Utilitarianism states that an action benefits the people if it is good and it harms the individuals if it is bad. The Act Utilitarianism states that if an action is good then it shall create more happiness than unhappiness while Rule Utilitarianism states that if the moral rules are followed by everybody then it shall increase the level of overall happiness (Broad 2014). The virtue ethics states that the virtue or the character of the moral agent must be the major factor of consideration rather than focusing on the rules that define what is right and what is wrong.

Privacy is one of the major issues that has aroused after the advent of internet. In most of the cases, the user has to give his personal information in order to sign up or register for online services. This has raised the concerns regarding the privacy of internet users. Therefore, it becomes necessary to identify the ethical issues and to find the best possible solution to the issues (Burmeister 2013). Considering these issues, various international and local professional organizations have come up with various code of ethics documents in order to provide the computing professionals and the users with the basic behavioral guidelines (Prettyman 2015).    

Morality refers to the categorization of the actions, intentions and decisions of the individuals into proper and improper. Morality refers to the principles that are derived from the code of conduct from some specific religion, philosophy or culture or from a universal belief. Ethics is often used interchangeably with morality (Staub 2013). Therefore, it can be stated that there is deep relation between computer ethics and human spirituality and religion.

Research Methodology

The key goal of the research is to critically analyze the relation between computer ethics and human spirituality and religion.

The objectives of the study are mentioned below:

• To investigate the major components of computer ethics
• To analyze the relationship between computer ethics and human spirituality
• To analyze the relationship between computer ethics and religion
• To investigate the effect of computer ethics on spirituality and religion and vice versa
• To recommend some useful techniques for building strong computer ethics that have positive impacts on human spirituality and religion 

The questions of the study are as follows:

• What are the similarities between human spirituality and computer ethics?
• Why is it necessary to consider human spirituality and religion while forming computer ethics?
• What is the role of spirituality in the development of humans and how does it relate with computer ethics?
• What are the techniques for building strong computer ethics that have positive impacts on human spirituality and religion?

The literature review discusses the several types of relevant concepts and theories that are related to the particular topic of research study.

According to Ming et al. (2015), computer ethics refers to the practical philosophy that is concerned about the way computer professionals must take decisions regarding the social and professional conduct. The ethical decision is influenced by the personal code of the individuals, the informal ethical code of conduct existing in the workplace and the exposure to the formal code of ethics.  

According to Floridi (2015), humans are the tool-maker as the creation of artifacts has become a part of our identity as humans. The connection of humans with spirituality is profound. Humans make religious icons in order to meditate their relation with God and to be sacred in their mindset. One of the typology suggests that the ethical concerns in relation with the misuse of technology are parallel to the spiritual rejection of worshipping.

In other words, Kerschner and Ehlers (2016) stated that the attitude of humans towards technology also reflects the spiritual relationship of humans with the nature and the religion. However, technology often provides the power over nature when the humans are led by the temptation of distorting the authentic dominion of humans into sinful dominions. Various critics have also linked science and technology with the patriarchal models of the relationship between God, nature and humanity that leads the humans to spirituality of confession and repentance (Dhiman 2016).

Figure 1: Ten commandments of computer ethics (Source: Author’s work)

• One should not use computer to harm other people: This commandment states that using computer for the purpose of harming others is unethical. This is not only considered with physical injury but it is related to the corrupting or harming the data and files of other people (Barquin 2014). This commandment states that it is unethical to steal the personal information of others. It is also unethical to manipulate or destroy the files of others. For example, a phone hacking scandal was reported in UK. It is also unethical to involve in practices such as hacking, phishing, spamming or cyber bullying. Human spirituality is against harming others and even all the religions across the world preach that one should not harm others.
• One should not interfere with the computer work of other people: It is unethical to use computer technology for disturbing others or interrupting the work of others. For example, viruses are meant to harm the computer programs and interfere in the proper functioning of the computer. For example, the Zika virus attack had infected more than 3600 computers per hour. The malicious software also harm the functioning of the computers. Therefore, it is unethical to use malicious software with the aim of attacking others computers. It is against religion to attack other human beings whether it is through war or through technology.
• One should not snoop around in the computer files of other people: As it is ethically wrong to read personal letters of other people in the same manner it is unethical to read e-mails, files or data of other people. Snooping around in files of other people is like invasion of one’s privacy. In certain cases spying into the personal data is not considered to be unethical. For example, in case of intelligence agencies, they spy on the internet activities of the suspected criminals, which is considered ethical. It is against human spirituality to harm the privacy of other fellow beings.
• One should not use computer to steal: It is unethical to steal or leak confidential or sensitive information of other people (Quinn 2014). For example, technology makes stealing of information easier such as bank details, employee database and other confidential information. Therefore, it becomes necessary for the users of technology to comply with the commandments of computer ethics. According to human spirituality and religion, any kind of stealing is a wrong act.
• One should not use computer for bearing false witness: The rise of internet has resulted in spread of information that also contain false information and rumors. It is unethical to circulate incorrect information using technology (Carroll 2014). It is ethically wrong to be involved in direct or indirect spreading of wrong information. Wrong information might also hurt the religious sentiments of people and it is against human spirituality.
• One should not use or copy the proprietors software for which one has not paid: Software are copyrighted and one is required to pay for using them. For example, it is unethical to copy software or purchase pirated software. Not only unethical but it is also illegal to purchase pirated software or copy software (Kerr and Hiltz 2013). This is similar to stealing that is forbidden by every religion and is against human spirituality.
• One should not use the computer resources of other people without authorization: It is unethical to use the computer resources of others unless one is authorized to use. Most of the computer systems allow multiple users to access the system. However, it is unethical to access the files and information of the other users by hacking their passwords. One should not harm the privacy of others.   
• One should consider the social consequences of the program one is writing or the system one is designing: A broader perspective of looking at the technology is considering the social consequences of the computer programs. Various video games, educational software and other entertainment software have a social impact on the users (Scott and Barlowe 2016). Therefore, it is the responsibility of the program developers to ensure that the software has positive impact on the society. The software must not harm religious sentiments and human spirituality (Kiesler 2014).  
• One should not appropriate the intellectual output of other people: Developing software and computer programs involve creativity and is the property of the developer or the organization. It is unethical to claim ownership on the work done by others (Rosenberg 2013). Therefore, one should not claim the intellectual output of others. Even religion says so that one should not take credit of the work done by others as it is against human spirituality.
• One should use computer in such a manner that it ensures consideration and respect for one’s fellow humans: One should treat others with respect while communicating over internet. It is unethical to use abusive languages and pass negative remarks about other people (Greenfield 2014). Even religion also says that one must prohibit from using abusive languages instead, one must be courteous while communicating with others. Even computer ethics states that one should not use foul language while communicating over web.

Research methodology deals with different types of tools, techniques and methods

of conducting research. Flick (2015) stated that research methodology is a systematic process that aids in conducting the entire research process in an organized way. Research methodology results in understanding of the various techniques pertaining to research. Therefore, research method can be described as a research process that is well-structured.

There are mainly three types of study of research. These comprise of the exploratory, descriptive and hypothesis testing research. As defined by Creswell (2013), exploratory research design aids the researcher when he does not have the clear idea about a particular research topic. This research study helps in conducting the entire research process with the help of some scientific view point.

Findings and Analysis

On the other hand, Hancock and Algozzine (2015) stated that descriptive research study aids in conducting the research with the help of some relevant theories and concepts. This method links the given research topic with some relevant theory or model.

However, in hypothesis testing research, the researcher is initially fixes the hypothesis and later on, the researcher tries to analyze the theories in respect of relevant model and principles.

For this research purpose, the researcher shall apply the descriptive research study for in depth analysis of the relevant topic.

Figure 2: Methods of data collection (Source: Taylor, Bogdan and DeVault 2015)

Several data is required for a research process. Therefore, primary and secondary data are required while conducting a research. Primary data refers to the data that is collected directly from the respondents of the research. Primary data is usually obtained from surveys, questionnaires and interviews (Mills 2015).

On the other hand, secondary data refers to the data that is obtained from the journals, websites and books. Secondary data are easily available through various journals and websites (Clark 2013). It helps the researcher to know the relevant concepts about topic. The researchers are required to collect both primary and secondary data in order to successfully carry out the research process. However, in this case only secondary data shall be collected.

For this research study, the researcher shall collect the secondary data from various journals and newspapers. Secondary sources of data shall provide theoretical views of the topic that shall be useful in analyzing the relation between computer ethics and human spirituality and religion.

The researchers have to face various issues with respect to the accessibility of relevant data during the research process. The secondary data may not be exactly related to the research topic. Sometimes it is difficult to find the authentic sources of secondary data. At times, the data provided by the secondary sources might not be correct. Therefore, the researcher might face a few accessibility issues while the research process is conducted.

Every researcher needs to consider some ethical issues while conducting the entire research process. The researcher needs to be confident of the fact that the secondary data shall never be utilized for any kind of purposes that are unethical. The researcher must be very careful while using the secondary data and must ensure that the data is collected from some authentic source.

Conclusion

There are possibilities of some limitations within a research process. In this case, the time and the finance shall be the main limitations of the particular research. Limited time and limited finance will be the limitations of the research.

The proposed dissertation should cover five parts. The first part shall be the introduction chapter that shall contain the research aim related to the topic and relevant research questions. The second part shall contain the literature review that shall consider the various relevant theories and concepts of the given research topic. The third part shall contain the research methodology, data collection process, accessibility issues and ethical issues. The fourth part shall contain the findings and analysis of the data. Lastly, the last part shall contain the conclusion pertaining to the entire research.

Table 3: Time horizon (Source: Author’s work)

Figure 4: Gnatt chart (Source: Author’s work)

1^st April to 10^th April shall be used for selecting the topic with the help of various secondary data such as books and journals. 11^th April to 20^th April, the researcher shall be involved in reading various relevant journals and books in order to enrich his/her knowledge. Framing the layout of the research shall also be done along with preparing the literature review. 21^st to 25^th April, the researcher shall form the research plan and shall select the appropriate tools, techniques and methods related to the research. 26^th to 30^th April, the researcher shall collect secondary data and shall ensure that the data is collected from authentic sources. The collection of secondary data shall further continue throughout the month of April of the research process. From 1^st May to 10^th May, the researcher shall analyze the findings of the secondary data. The researcher shall also find out the conclusion of the entire research process and finally between 11^th May to 18^th May, the researcher shall draw the last completion of the research project.

Conclusion:

The research proposal tries to find out the relation between computer ethics with human spirituality and religion. The report stated that computer ethics refers to the practical philosophy that is concerned about the way computer professionals must take decisions regarding the social and professional conduct. However, morality is comprised of the principles that are derived from the code of conduct from some specific religion, philosophy or culture or from a universal belief. Therefore, it can be stated that ethics is often used interchangeably with morality. Hence, it can be concluded that the attitude of humans towards technology reflects the spiritual relationship of humans with the nature and the religion. However, technology often provides the power over nature when the humans are led by the temptation of distorting the authentic dominion of humans into sinful dominions.  Therefore, it becomes the responsibility of the program developers to ensure that the software has positive impact on the society. The software must not pose any harm to the religious sentiments and human spirituality. Human spirituality is against harming others and even all the religions across the world preach that one should not harm others. In the similar manner, computer ethics also states not to harm the other people by refraining from stealing information, spreading wrong information, accessing one’s personal files without any authorization, spreading malicious software or virus, copying or pirating the original software and using abusive language over the internet communication. Following these computer ethics shall indirectly lead to following the religion and positive human spirituality.   

References:

Barquin, R.C., 2014. Ten commandmenTs oF compuTeR eThics. Bursting the Big Data Bubble: The Case for Intuition-Based Decision Making, p.213.

Broad, C.D., 2014. Five types of ethical theory (Vol. 2). Routledge.

Burmeister, O.K., 2013. Achieving the goal of a global computing code of ethics through an international-localisation hybrid. Ethical Space, 10(4), pp.25-32.

Carroll, J.M., 2014. Computer security. Butterworth-Heinemann.

Clark, G., 2013. 5 Secondary data. Methods in Human Geography, p.57.

Creswell, J.W., 2013. Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage publications

Dhiman, S., 2016. Epilogue: The Ethics and Spirituality of Sustainability. In Spirituality and Sustainability (pp. 235-252). Springer International Publishing.

Flick, U., 2015. Introducing research methodology: A beginner’s guide to doing a research project. Sage.

Floridi, L., 2015. The onlife manifesto. Springer-Verlag GmbH.

Greenfield, P.M., 2014. Mind and media: The effects of television, video games, and computers. Psychology Press.

Hancock, D.R. and Algozzine, B., 2015. Doing case study research: A practical guide for beginning researchers. Teachers College Press..

Kerr, E.B. and Hiltz, S.R., 2013. Computer-mediated communication systems: Status and evaluation. Academic Press.

Kerschner, C. and Ehlers, M.H., 2016. A framework of attitudes towards technology in theory and practice. Ecological Economics, 126, pp.139-151.

Kiesler, S., 2014. Culture of the Internet. Psychology Press.

Mills, J.A., Teplitsky, C., Arroyo, B., Charmantier, A., Becker, P.H., Birkhead, T.R., Bize, P., Blumstein, D.T., Bonenfant, C., Boutin, S. and Bushuev, A., 2015. Archiving primary data: solutions for long-term studies. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 30(10), pp.581-589.

Ming, T.M., Jabar, M.A., Sidi, F. and Wei, K.T., 2015. A systematic literature review of computer ethics issues. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Information Technology, 78(3), p.360.

Prettyman, S.S., Furman, S., Theofanos, M. and Stanton, B., 2015, August. Privacy and security in the brave new world: The use of multiple mental models. In International Conference on Human Aspects of Information Security, Privacy, and Trust (pp. 260-270). Springer International Publishing.

Quinn, M.J., 2014. Ethics for the information age. Pearson.

Rehg, W., 2015. Discourse ethics for computer ethics: a heuristic for engaged dialogical reflection. Ethics and Information Technology, 17(1), pp.27-39.

Rosenberg, R.S., 2013. The social impact of computers. Elsevier.

Scott, A. and Barlowe, S., 2016, October. How software works: Computational thinking and ethics before CS1. In Frontiers in Education Conference (FIE), 2016 IEEE (pp. 1-9). IEEE.

Staub, E., 2013. Positive social behavior and morality: Social and personal influences. Elsevier.

Taylor, S.J., Bogdan, R. and DeVault, M., 2015. Introduction to qualitative research methods: A guidebook and resource. John Wiley & Sons.

Vaughn, L., 2015. Doing ethics: Moral reasoning and contemporary issues. WW Norton & Company.

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