An article in the NY Times focuses on recent activity in the internet technology community on the ethics of doing research like the Facebook study. The article can be accessed here: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/13/technology/the-boon-of-online-data-puts-social-science-in-a-quandary.html?emc=edit_th_20140813&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=389166&_r=0
The major companies (i.e., Facebook, Google, Microsoft, etc.) are taking the ethical issues more seriously in response to the negative backlash to the Facebook study. So, instead of assuming that a company can do anything it wants with personal information they are starting to realize that the persons who use their service may need to be more involved in such decisions. Consider the following quotes: |While some would say the risks of the Facebook study were |obvious, Professor Hancock said the researchers did not realize |that manipulating the news feed, even modestly, would make |some people feel violated. | |He learned otherwise from hundreds of anguished and angry |emails he received after the work was published. "They said: |'You can't mess with my emotions. It's like messing with me. |It's mind control.' " And: |Dr. Gray advocates a simple litmus test for researchers: If you're |afraid to ask your subjects for their permission to conduct the |research, there's probably a deeper ethical issue that must be |considered. -Mike Palij New York University [email protected] --- You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected]. To unsubscribe click here: http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=37915 or send a blank email to leave-37915-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu
