Potential Ethical, Social, And Legal Issues From ICT Developments Essay.

Importance of Informed consent in ICT Solutions

Discuss about the ICT Developments Ethical, Social and Legal Issues.

Ethical issues in ICT solutions revolve around internal and external factors of an organization. Developing and maintaining ethics becomes a challenge when ethical dilemma arises [1]. In the case study, the issue of informed consent raises questions whether both the internal and external participants are competent for the task, or not. It is also important to note whether their participation compromises data. Although the employees have the competence, they may have prior information of what the study seeks to find out. Therefore, the consent forms for employees and outsiders should differ. Informed consent is not coercion and the participant needs to be aware of their rights and the purpose of study. Both participants take part in the study voluntarily and the protection of personal details is important. Before any participant agrees to consent, they have a right to choose whether to participate or to stop taking part in the study. The website serves both employees and outsiders. These are users targeted by the collaborative research [2]. Their participation brings out different aspects of usability and challenges.  The website development team needs to capture whether employees can access portals effectively under a secure system.  The fact that the company paid for the research does not warrant their forceful participation in the research.

According to Australian Computer Society (ACS) [3] professionalism is important and workers should uphold public interest issues with utmost importance. Usability testing is important in knowledge development for the growth of the ICT sector. Professional conduct also enhances the quality of life for its users. Participating in the research is important. Taking part in the study is an important part of professional development. The researchers in the study also have a responsibility to maintain integrity and respect of their workers. Therefore, consent in this case upholds the public interest with utmost importance than professional expectations.

Kevin Rudd and the language game displays the use of emotive language to apologize for unfairness and its superficial effects [4]. He uses alliteration as he starts his speech to remind the audience on the past mistreatment of the community. He also repeats the apology for the injustices citing the unfair policies and mistreatments. For some listeners to the speech, it may sound ironical to refer to Aborigines as being ‘fellow Australians’ and he uses the phrase as a cliché. His language is in the rhetoric when he refers to the Aborigines as the oldest continuing culture. His reference to the dark history of cultural discrimination as the stolen generation is a hyperbole indicating Australia’s blemished chapter. His apology sounds ironical because the laws and policies continue to oppress the community [5]. The personification of the past and suggestions that Australians embrace the future helps to shade light on the expected change. His suggestion of a country where people are fully reconciled seems more of a dream than a reality because the truth is fare from the reality. This makes his speech to sound sarcastic. His dream of an Australian country where everyone has equal opportunities is an exaggeration, which is not literally true. However, it helps to shape the ideal. The idea is to show sincerity for the apology. It is an effort to try to convince the indigenous community who feel oppressed by the government. This persuasion tactic helps him to negotiate the government’s position [5]. 

Professional Conduct in ICT

Procrastination is the postponement of important tasks, hoping to complete them later. It often affects learners and professionals [7]. For example, out of laziness, I have often left important tasks for smaller ones leading to a pile up of assignments. On the other hand, the Australian Indigenous case example shows how the government can make an apology for the past in the present in order to pave the way for tangible changes in the future [6]. Procrastination often seems skeptical and it may hinder progress but a resolve to avoid it shows commitment.

The working environment is full of different stressful situations. Some people view stress as good for performance while others consider it detrimental to the human mind [9]. Having a clear definition of stress provides a guide on how to manage it. The American Psychological Association defines stress as an uncomfortable overwhelming situation that weighs down a person [10]. This emotional burn down could come from a number of factors. Working in ICT involves a lot of multitasking which calls for a balanced approach to performance. Stress management is important because it helps individuals to cope at work and away from the office.

In my experience working in the systems management department, I realized that sometimes projects take longer than expected. This means extended working hours, which often lead to an emotional burn down. When this happens, I easily get angry and direct the frustration to other technology professionals. Family and friends also face the wrath and it portraying a professional image becomes difficult [11]. One particularly stressful event was when we were trying to set up a website for a company unsuccessfully. Three times the client kept sending the website asking for changes on its contents. Just when we thought we were done, he cancelled the project citing delayed work. This was unfair because he was the one who made the unspecified changes.

Learning about ethics has given me different perspectives on professional life. Sometimes acting professionally calls for the suppression of personal values in order to serve people. Acting as a professional means that the customer is right most of the time. Since we deal with all kinds of clients and some of them are unbearable, I need to show kindness, honesty and trust all the time. Work ethics is about implementing codes of conduct. I realize that the ACS codes support the placement of public interest at the center of professionalism [3]. If I try to prove my competency, I will only be stressing myself. To avoid confrontational situations, it is wise to discuss company policy with the clients.  It is good to remember that the customer has the freedom to make the purchasing decision [12]. 

Emotive Language in Apology

As part of self- development, I have learnt to combine personal and professional values. It is evident that stress is unavoidable today and more people are finding solutions to cope with its effects [13]. The application of codes of ethics is one way to solve and avoid stress. Choosing to do the right thing is not easy because it is a win and lose situation. Following professional codes helps me to avoid ethical dilemma, which leads to feelings of guilt, self-blame and frustration. I choose to follow guidelines in codes of conduct without ignoring personal values [14]. In doing so, I learn that morality is relative and people get motivation from different things. In order to avoid legal tussles, it is better to uphold the law. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, my future learning needs will be to dig deeper into stress management and ICT because innovation has advantages and disadvantages. People today have learnt to cope with technology and its changes [15]. However, I realized that every now and then, innovation that purports to solve modern day problems springs up. As a profession in the field of innovation, I feel there should be ways to help people cope with these changes. Professionals spend most of their time at work hence stress levels tend to be higher at work. An effective approach to performance and improvement in ICT organizations needs to consider stress management tactics for its employees [16]. 

[1] L. Raftree, "Rethinking informed concent in digital development," ICT Works, 7 November 2016. [Online]. Available: https://www.acs.org.au/content/dam/acs/rules-and-regulations/Code-of-Professional-Conduct_v2.1.pdf. [Accessed 30 August 2017].

[2] T. locke, N. Alcorn and J. & O'Neil, "Ethical issues in Collaborative action research," Educational Action Research , vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 107-123, 2013.
[3] ACS, "ACS Code of Profesional Conduct," Australian Computer Society, April 2014. [Online]. Available: https://www.acs.org.au/content/dam/acs/rules-and-regulations/Code-of-Professional-Conduct_v2.1.pdf. [Accessed 30 August 2017].
[4] K. Rudd, "Apology to Australia's Indigeneous people's speech delivered in Australian Parliament," Prime Minister Kevin Rudd Speech, 13 February 2008.
[5] F. Brennan, "Reconciliation and the political virtue of apology," Religion and Ethics, 28 May 2012.
[6] R. Lewicki, D. Saunders, J. Minton, J. Roy and N. Lewicki, Essentials of negotiation, Boston, MA: McGraw Hill/Irvin, 2011.
[7] M. Clariana, C. Gotzens, D. Badia and R. Cladellas, "Procastination and cheating from secondary school to university," Electronic Journal of Research in Educational Psychology, vol. 10, no. 27, 2012.
[8] A. D. Moses, "Official apologies, reconcilliation, and settler colonialism: Australian indigenous alterity and polictical agency," Citizenship Studies , vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 145-159, 2011.
[9] ICT Academy, "Stress Management-Myth and Practices," LinkedIn, 3 July 2015.
[10] APA, "Understanding Psychological Association," APA, 2017.
[11] M. Roberts, "Professional ethics and the ACS Code," 2017. [Online]. Available: https://web.science.mq.edu.au/~mattr/courses/object_oriented_development_practices/7/notes.html. [Accessed 31 August 2017].
[12] Ethical sales practices, "Ethical sales practices," Business Queensland, 2017. [Online]. Available: https://www.business.qld.gov.au/starting-business/licensing-obligations/legal-obligations/ethical-selling/ethical-practices. [Accessed 31 August 2017].
[13] M. Melnick, "20 scientifically Backed ways to destress right now," Huffington Post, 9 September 2013. [Online]. Available: https://www.acas.org.uk/media/pdf/l/m/B18_1.pdf. [Accessed 31 August 2017].
[14] International Stress Management Association, "ISMA Code of conduct," ISMA UK, 2016. [Online]. Available: https://isma.org.uk/join-isma/code-of-conduct. [Accessed 31 August 2017].
[15] S. Haeflinger and C. Baden-Fuller, "Business Models and Technological Innovation," Long Range Planning, vol. 46, no. 6, pp. 419-426, 2013.
[16] J. Shropshire and C. Kadlec, "I'm leaving the IT field: The impact of stress, job insecurity and burnout on IT professionals," INternational Journal of Information and Communication Technology Research, vol. 2, no. 1, 2012.
[17] Science, "Professional ethics and the ACS Code," [Online]. Available: https://web.science.mq.edu.au/~mattr/courses/object_oriented_development_practices/7/notes.html. [Accessed 31 August 2017].