Ethics in Tech Education: Designing to Provide Opportunity for All
Summary
Key Insights
-
•
Human-centered designers have historically combined problem-finding with problem-solving, but must guard against becoming problem-creators.
-
•
Ethical codes established in medicine, like respect for autonomy and non-maleficence, provide valuable frameworks for technology designers.
-
•
Engineers take an iron ring as a symbol of ethical responsibility and personal fallibility, illustrating deep commitment to public safety.
-
•
Software and design failures in areas like electronic medical records can cause fatal errors, underscoring the life-impact of design decisions.
-
•
High-profile ethical breaches like Volkswagen’s emissions scandal demonstrate how deliberate unethical choices at multiple levels cause widespread harm.
-
•
Cambridge Analytica’s misuse of personal data shows ethical risks when designers are disconnected from the societal impact of their work.
-
•
In education technology, balancing individual learner privacy with enterprise client needs requires active ethical decision-making and compromise.
-
•
Avoiding ‘weaponizing’ products means resisting the urge to implement features that could harm users, like forced assessments tied to promotions.
-
•
Ethical design processes must include comprehensive user research to understand concerns, priorities, and the nuances of impact.
-
•
Companies alone cannot have ethics; ethical responsibility lies with individual practitioners who must cultivate awareness and act courageously.
Notable Quotes
"We are problem-finders and problem-solvers, but if we’re not very careful, we can also become problem-creators."
"Ethics are the discipline of dealing with what is good or bad with moral duty and obligation."
"First-do-no-harm actually goes farther than just not causing harm; it involves striving for the best possible outcome."
"Engineers receive an iron ring to remind them of their fallibility and ethical responsibility to society."
"Medical errors should rank as the third leading cause of death in the US, many influenced by software and communication failures."
"Volkswagen’s leadership and engineers made conscious choices to break laws that harmed people’s health and our environment."
"Being far removed from the consequences of your design work can lead to apathy and a shrug of the shoulders."
"We made the conscious decision not to weaponize our product, even though it could have increased revenue and sales."
"Find your blind spots and be honest about your and your team’s abilities to avoid harm."
"Ethics must live in the practitioner; companies are not people and cannot embody ethics without individuals choosing to do so."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"Defining teams by shared value — what’s desirable, compliant, feasible, and viable — broke down silos effectively."
Erin HauberDesign is Not the Frosting on the Scaled Agile Layer Cake
October 24, 2019
"Supporting authenticity in the workplace lets people be themselves, which naturally boosts confidence."
Megan KiersteadYou Are a Badass at UX: Overcoming Imposter Syndrome
March 10, 2021
"Do not judge me by my success, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again."
Maggie DieringerCreating Consistency Through Constant Change
January 8, 2024
"We’ve seen organizations try to run 52 projects with only 36 teams—distraction at its worst."
Meaghan Waters Fotina KoutropoulousLack of Product Thinking will Doom Your Legacy Modernization
June 9, 2021
"It really matters to researchers’ identities whether they see themselves as user or market researchers."
Jemma AhmedBringing together market and user research
October 17, 2019
"The more you know, the more you have the ability to make informed decisions and better control events."
Maria TaylorKnowledge is Power: Managing the Lifeblood of the Design Org
October 3, 2023
"When blind users choose between Android and iPhone, they weigh trade-offs between stability and customizability."
Sam ProulxUnderstanding Screen Readers on Mobile: How And Why to Learn from Native Users
June 6, 2023
"Project leadership can be at any level; the right discipline leads, not necessarily the most senior person."
Catherine BlizzardUsing Integrated Insight to Drive Growth
March 10, 2022
"Laura let out a sigh of relief and said, I don’t think I could ever recover the way that you did."
Randolph Duke IIWar Stories LIVE! Randy Duke II
March 30, 2020
