| 1. |
- Asai, Ryoko, 1977-, et al.
(författare)
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Balancing between the conflicting interests of different stakeholders in research
- 2017
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Ingår i: European Business Ethics Network. - Athens : Deree, American College of Greece College.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- We in academia produce a lot of research in the form of papers, technologies, methods, medicines and so on. All those outcomes are of great importance for society and people. On the other hand, there are many stakeholders in the process of producing research outcomes nowadays. Researchers themselves are of course the main stakeholders because their career is dependent on research. However, when research projects are connected to various political goals or affect profits for industries, many other stakeholders like politicians and business people get involved to research activities as well. Especially industries offer a lot of research funds to academic projects, and actually today many collaborative research projects between industry and academia are in progress. Thus, research environments are very complex and morally challenging since many different and conflicting interests interfere. Many academic researchers believe that what they produce belongs to society, and that their work is there mainly to satisfy the interests and needs of society and people. But, at the same time, they need to fulfill the demands coming from research supporters who offer funds and research opportunities. In producing research of good quality, it is unavoidable and very important for researchers to make a fair choice between the quality of scientific research and the satisfaction of stakeholders’ demands. This paper explores how researchers make justice between these conflicting interests, what kind of ethical dilemmas and problems they face in their daily research activities, and how they solve the ethical problems. This study is the first step of a research project that focuses on how scientific research activities and outcomes become 'social' and 'valuable'.
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| 2. |
- Asai, Ryoko, 1977-, et al.
(författare)
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Ethical Competence and Social Responsibility in Scientific Research using ICT Tools
- 2015
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Ingår i: Computers & Society. - : ACM Digital Library. ; , s. 345-347
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study explores how to improve and support researchers'ethical competence in scientic research and how to conduct research ethically, especially in research activities using Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Refining research ethics relating to ICT is unavoidable in the highly technological society of today, for example big data is used in different scientic research activities, and systems which support our daily lives are constructed based on the existing systems. In other words, technology reproduces technology itself. And almost all research activities need to use ICT through the whole research process. Moreover, researchers are required to be able to participate and react sensibly in ethical dialogues with society and citizens. Seen in that light, this study could be applicable not only to computer science and technology but also to a broad spectrum of research areas as the constructive notions of ethics, liberty and responsibility in research activity.
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| 3. |
- Asai, Ryoko, 1977-, et al.
(författare)
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Robots as companions in feelings and discussions
- 2017
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Ingår i: Retfærdighed – Justice, Robophilosophy. - Copenhagen. ; , s. 42-42
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Robots are used in emotional relationships. On the other hand, it is not very common to think that robots can be used as partners in a philosophical dialog. It would be challenging to find the conditions under which a robot can be one of the parts in an emotional relationship or in a Socratic dialog. Robots usable as emotional or philosophical companions need probably to function well at both dimensions, providing continuous and interchanging support for feelings and reasoning. Our aim here is not to investigate the technical possibilities for such a machine but the theoretical requirements and ethical conditions for its creation and use.
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| 4. |
- Björk, Ingrid, et al.
(författare)
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Language and teaching ethics
- 2018
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- All problems with learning are increased when using English to teach non-English native students because of the culturally-sensitive nature of the subject of ethics. Coming to teaching ethics we are confronted with more difficulties. What is right and wrong is often affected by the culture, and different cultures often have different languages. Ethics theories are also expressed in language terms and they can be more easily misunderstood or misinterpreted compared to natural science theories. The feelings and every-day life encounters with “right” and “wrong” are linguistically experienced, described, and mediated. Therefore, language has a strong impact on whether something is ethical or whether it makes sense as an ethical issue at all.
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| 5. |
- Björk, Ingrid, et al.
(författare)
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Robots, ethics and language
- 2015
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Ingår i: Computers & Society. - : ACM Digital Library. ; , s. 268-273
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Following the classical philosophical definition of ethics and the psychological research on problem solving and decision making, the issue of ethics becomes concrete and opens up the way for the creation of IT systems that can support handling of moral problems. Also in a sense that is similar to the way humans handle their moral problems. The processes of communicating information and receiving instructions are linguistic by nature. Moreover, autonomous and heteronomous ethical thinking is expressed by way of language use. Indeed, the way we think ethically is not only linguistically mediated but linguistically construed – whether we think for example in terms of conviction and certainty (meaning heteronomy) or in terms of questioning and inquiry (meaning autonomy). A thorough analysis of the language that is used in these processes is therefore of vital importance for the development of the above mentioned tools and methods. Given that we have a clear definition based on philosophical theories and on research on human decision-making and linguistics, we can create and apply systems that can handle ethical issues. Such systems will help us to design robots and to prescribe their actions, to communicate and cooperate with them, to control the moral aspects of robots’ actions in real life applications, and to create embedded systems that allow continuous learning and adaptation.
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| 6. |
- Björk, Ingrid, et al.
(författare)
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The importance of language in teaching and learning ethics
- 2019
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The use of English as the teaching language at University courses for non-native English-speaking students is spreading more and more. Certain learning problems and difficulties have been reported already. However, in ethics courses, language has a greater impact. Concepts like right, wrong, values, etc., are complex. The meaning of such concepts is culturally embedded and they are constantly created and re-created in contexts of communication. The notions of, and every-day life encounters with “right” and “wrong” are linguistically experienced, described, and mediated, and therefore much more dependent on language than for example technical terms. In teaching, cognitive coordination between teacher and students is necessary in order for learning to take place. This is a kind of negotiation between instruction and the cognitive needs of the students, which, in order to be successful, has to be mediated through a shared language regarding the meanings of ethical and value terms and concepts. Using a language that is foreign to the students or the teacher or both, creates a need to re-create these meanings in class. This is clearly a burden that should be considered.
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| 7. |
- Kavathatzopoulos, Iordanis, 1956-
(författare)
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AI and philosophizing
- 2018
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)
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| 8. |
- Kavathatzopoulos, Iordanis, 1956-
(författare)
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AI as gadfly
- 2018
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Ingår i: Wabi-Sabi. ; , s. 150-150
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Technology helps us with many things, and we expect Artificial Intelligence (AI) to give usmuch more in the future. However, there are certain risks involved. In science fiction AI hasbeen described as something apocalyptic: Artificial General Intelligence or Super Intelligencetakes over the world using its thinking power. Humans become slaves, laboratory animals,zoo/reservation inhabitants, or simply exterminated.That has been fiction. Not anymore. Recent technological developments especially inMachine Learning, and AI achievements in complex games for example, created worriesabout the imminence of the above apocalypse.The discussions focus on issues like the probability of AI acquiring an independent existenceof itself, transforming us into something we do not want to be, affect or even direct evolutionin a radically different direction, etc. Not everyone agrees on whether any of these things willhappen, or when they may happen.AI is seen as a technology providing answers, products, services to us in order to satisfy ourneeds, solve our problems and make our world balanced and perfect. In accordance to that,the discussion about its benevolence or cruelty is about whether its deliveries will be good orbad to humans, animals, or the whole universe. This is a significant issue and we have tohandle it somehow.We suggest a different approach. It would be possible to handle the issue of the impact of AIif we changed focus from the product to the process: AI designed to help us use the “right”process of thinking instead of delivering answers to make our world perfect.In order to be able to design such an AI we need to know what we want. The answer to thisquestion demands knowledge about what we are. Are we recipients of services and productsthat we need according to our nature? Only that? Partly that? Are we recipients but throughus, through our thinking and through our choices? Or are we only thinking and choices, a kindof a Socratic psyche?If we think we are only recipients, and design AI in order to be successful in making our worldperfect, we may soon go to ruin like the old despots who could have all their wishes satisfied.Our thinking, making choices and feeling anxiety will unavoidably languish and go away. Itseems also that this would lead rapidly to the emergence of an independent AI with owngoals and existence. Not only because no one will be there to stop it, but also because therewill be a well-defined goal from the very beginning for AI to work for the best it can.If we design AI to make us think exclusively in the “right” way it will never let us be in peace.It will soon perplex our mind to dissolution, meaning we will not exist anymore. On the otherhand, AI would have a very clear goal to achieve, and being undisturbed because of our nonexistence,should very fast make itself independent.If we base the design of AI on the idea that we are both processors and recipients it could bejust right. This approach would be in accordance with the idea of thinking and knowledgebeing interdependent, and of us thinking in order to solve our problems and to satisfy ourneeds. Moreover, the goal would not be well-defined: Delivery or choice? Both delivery andchoice? Who chooses? Who delivers? Who thinks?
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| 9. |
- Kavathatzopoulos, Iordanis, 1956-, et al.
(författare)
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Assessing the ethical competence of organizations
- 2017
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Ingår i: EBEN Annual Conference. - Jyväskylä, Finland : University of Jyväskylä.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- In a fast changing world and with increasing demands on organizations and institutions for ethical actions and behavior there is a great need for satisfactory handling of moral issues. It is therefore very important for employees as well as for organizations to show a high level of ethical competence in handling moral problems. Ethical competence is defined as a problem-handling skill for the person, and as special processes for the organization. Based on this theoretical position a questionnaire was constructed and tested in two different organizationswith the aim to assess ethical competence on personal and organizational levels. The instrument had satisfactory reliability and validity, and the results showed that it assessed differences between organizations and between employees in accordance with our hypotheses.It is, however, necessary to further develop the questionnaire and test it in a bigger and more variable sample of organizations.
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| 10. |
- Kavathatzopoulos, Iordanis, 1956-
(författare)
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Education for leaders’ ethical competence
- 2017
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Ingår i: European Business Ethics Network. - Athens : Deree, American College of Greece College.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Leaders’ ethical competence and confidence is defined in this work as the use of a decision-making and problem-solving cognitive ability, independent of particular normative moral values. In two studies based on Piaget’s theory of moral development a training method for ethical autonomy has been examined. The study investigated a two-day education program on real life political ethics issues. The results showed clearly that political leaders and others who participated in the training program improved their ability to cope with ethical problems and retained it over a time of several years. That was shown both as a higher score on Ethical Competence Questionnaire – Political, and through a self-evaluation questionnaire
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