Technology Ethics Flashcards

1
Q

What is the technology-blindness of traditional ethics?

A

Traditional ethics has an image of the human being as an autonomous subject (who can use science and technology to achieve their aims). This is a humanistic, anthropocentric view. Moral theory concerns how our people’s actions are related to other rational autonomous beings (=people). This excludes the moral role of material objects, that and how technologies order societies and the potential moral significance of “non-humans” as “others”.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What is the view of determinism on technology?

A

Technology just develops as it does. “If I can’t stop these developments, I don’t think anyone else can”.

Jacques Ellul (& Theodor Adorno + Max
Horkheimer): Technological determinism:
development of technology is autonomous
steering force: optimal efficiency

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Where does the determinist view of technology lead to?

A

Either a doom scenario or a salvation scenario

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What is the view of non-determinism on technology?

A

There are two versions of non-determinism: light and not-so-light.
Light: “We can influence the way technology develops”
Not-so-light: “We are in complete control of the way technology develops”

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Where does technology ethics deal with?

A
  • (the moral aspects of) the relationship between humans and technology
  • technological worlds, technological futures
  • moral questions specific to the technological age
  • new emerging technologies = new emerging principles
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What is the view of instrumentalism on technology?

A

Technology isn’t good or bad, it is in the hands of the people. “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people” would be a typical instrumentalist quote.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What is the view of substantivism on technology?

A

Technology structures our lives and cultures. Technology steers our view of the world. Science and technology are not neutral at all. Technology opens up a restricted window on the world
- technology largely determines how we perceive and appreciate reality

Martin Heidegger:
• infiltration of technology in all sectors of society
• other social domains lose ability to assign meaning

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is an artifact?

A

Artifacts are all things made by humans

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What is the view of interactivism on technology?

A

technology interacts with our lives and
cultures. Interactivists stress the moral relevance of technologies. They emphasize that these technologies that surround us and that are at least in part decisive for how we look at the world and how we interact with each other, what we value and how we live up to our values. This increases the complexity of moral problems

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Why is instrumentalism probrematic?

A
P1: Technologies have a function
P2: To have a function, means to
(help) achieve a goal
P3: Goals imply values
C: Technologies are value-laden
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What is old-school technological determinism?

A

Karl Marx:
The material and economic structure of production in society [“base”] by and large determines the social, political, institutional and cultural structure of that society [“superstructure”].
Technology forms a major factor in the “base.”
Hence, technology co-determines society’s social, political, institutional and cultural structure.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Do artifacts have socio-cultural effects?

A

Yes. Cultural values and ideas of the designer are

imprinted in the artifact these inscriptions prescribe how you should behave.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What are scripts?

A

Cultural values and ideas of the designer imprinted in the artifact. These inscriptions prescribe how you should behave. Scripts are not rigid, they might be changed by future users. E.g. webcam used as a mirror

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What were the societal implications of the introduction of the birth control pill?

A
  • The birth control pill is associated with the separation of sex from reproduction
  • Pill allowed “unpunished” experimentation (“sex is for recreation, IVF is for procreation”)
  • Sexual emancipation of women and homosexuals
  • Birth regulation mentality (“unplanned” has come to mean “unwanted”)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What is the impact of technology on ethics?

A
  • we are living in a technological culture
  • technology extends in space and time
  • the moral action is unclear, sometimes invisible
  • technological artifacts have moral significance and consequences
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What is the pragmatist view on technology ethics?

A
  • Focus is on how to recognize and trace moral problems in the first place
  • More than on how to reach and justify normative judgments about technology
  • The process of dealing with these problems is considered (at least) equally important as its outcome
  • It takes into account:
  • The moral significance of artifacts
  • The aspect of change
  • The need for new ways of understanding moral problems
17
Q

What is a dramatic rehearsal?

A

‘“dramatic rehearsal,” the imagining of a plurality of possible futures and the ways that lead to their realization. This involves thick descriptions of complex scenarios, of various competing possible lines of action and courses of conduct.’

18
Q

How do pragmatist technology ethics deal with value conflicts in pluralistic societies?

A

Dealing with value conflicts in pluralistic
societies:
‘Pragmatists aim to develop different tools of “conflict management” to enhance mutual respect and to promote the ideal of equal coexistence. One method to make persistent conflicts manageable is breaking up dualisms and relativizing rigid dichotomies. This can be done through gradualization: thinking in terms of degrees instead of boundaries.’

19
Q

What is the reflective equilibrium?

A

A tool to make a morally justifiable decision. All three components must be clarified and balanced. The three components are:

  • Moral intuition
  • Morally relevant facts
  • Moral principles
20
Q

What happens when morally relevant principles aren’t considered in the reflective equilibrium?

A

PUB-TALK:

Pure emotions and all kinds of stories, random “facts”, hearsay references…

21
Q

What happens when morally relevant facts aren’t considered in the reflective equilibrium?

A

Not realistic, (too) hypothetical, fictive

22
Q

What happens when moral intuition isn’t considered in the reflective equilibrium?

A

traditional, juridical

23
Q

What type of arguments weigh heavier in the reflective equilibrium?

A

Rule of thumb:
deontological arguments weigh heavier than consequentialist arguments (defending individuals’ rights vs. accounting for group interests)