Browsing by Author "Flick, Catherine"
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Item Open Access ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct(Association for Computing Machinery, 2018-06-22) Gotterbarn, D. W.; Brinkman, Bo; Flick, Catherine; Kirkpatrick, Michael S.; Miller, Keith; Vazansky, Kate; Wolf, Marty J.Computing professionals' actions change the world. To act responsibly, they should reflect upon the wider impacts of their work, consistently supporting the public good. The ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct ("the Code") expresses the conscience of the profession. The Code is designed to inspire and guide the ethical conduct of all computing professionals, including current and aspiring practitioners, instructors, students, influencers, and anyone who uses computing technology in an impactful way. Additionally, the Code serves as a basis for remediation when violations occur. The Code includes principles formulated as statements of responsibility, based on the understanding that the public good is always the primary consideration. Each principle is supplemented by guidelines, which provide explanations to assist computing professionals in understanding and applying the principle.Item Open Access ACM code of ethics: a guide for positive action(Association for Computing Machinery, 2018-01) Gotterbarn, D. W.; Bruckman, Amy; Flick, Catherine; Miller, Keith; Wolf, Marty J.The ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct (the Code) is being updated by the Code Update Task Forcea in conjunction with the ACM's Committee on Professional Ethics. The Code was initially written in 1992, and this is the first update since then. In previous articles we detailed the motivations for updating the Code,b gave our responses to feedback on the initial draft, and produced an updated version, which we presented for feedback through the ACM Discourse site, email, and focus groups and workshops at ETHICOMP and SIGCSE. We thank everyone who took part in this public consultation round. Their insights, both positive and negative, were invaluable. We have deliberated extensively on the numerous suggestions for additions, changes, and deletions. Based on those deliberations, we produced Draft 3 of the Code.Item Open Access AR Games as a Potential Source of Improved Mental Wellbeing: Implications for self-help and individual support(Ingenta, 2019-10-01) Urwin, Jessica; Flick, CatherineThis paper argues that augmented reality (AR) games such as Pokémon Go are beneficial in enhancing the mood and mental wellbeing of players. Whilst developed purely for entertainment purposes, AR games can offer a number of social and emotional benefits. Within this paper Pokémon Go is used as an example. Whilst benefits from playing such as increased physical activity have been found to be short lived, the combination of active participation, positive reinforcement, and nostalgia that are central to Pokémon Go’s gameplay appear to have a longer impact upon mental wellbeing. Using survey data, this research considers three key aspects of mood in relation to the experience of gameplay: activity, relationships and environment. This highlights the impact playing Pokémon Go has on mood, and shows broader implications for the use of augmented reality games in self-help strategies and developing mental wellbeing on an individual level.Item Embargo Ask an ethicist: reflections on an engagement technique for industry(ACM SIGCAS, 2016-01-05) Flick, CatherineIn this paper, a method for engagement with industry stakeholders, namely, a booth at an industry convention entitled "Ask an Ethicist" is presented and reflected upon. Engagement methods included informal discussions with stakeholders, and challenges for attendees through targeted questions addressing ethical and social issues in the industry. While this booth was targeted at the video games industry, the author has reason to believe that it could be useful in other industry events to encourage and facilitate engagement between industry and society, and as a potential data collection tool for research into RRI in industry.Item Embargo Chickens in Video Games: Archaeology and ethics inform upon complex relationships(Sidestone Press, 2017) Fothergill, B. Tyr; Flick, CatherineThis article describes the results of a qualitative analysis of the presence and portrayals of chickens in video games. It examines the relationships between chickens as digital beings and human players, as well as the context of chickens within different game environments. This study uses archaeological and historical evidence to demonstrate the complexity inherent in human-chicken relationships over time and the tensions between temporally-contingent welfare expectations and those present in video games, as well as highlighting problematic ways in which chickens are depicted. It employs an applied ethics approach to identifying key issues of concern and suggesting alternative ways of portraying and interacting with chickens in video games.Item Metadata only Conditions for a critical perspective on ambient intelligence: Ethical and social issues.(IFB Press, 2009) Goujon, Philippe; Flick, CatherineItem Metadata only Conditions for an effectiveness of ethical reflexivity in ICT-based projects: from theory to practice.(2010) Goujon, Philippe; Flick, CatherineItem Open Access A Critical Professional Ethical Analysis of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)(Elsevier, 2022-10-22) Flick, CatherineNon-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) have quickly become an important part of the blockchain economy, theoretically representing ownership of a digital asset registered on a public blockchain such as Ethereum. While several applications of this technology exist, the key underlying factor in NFTs’ success is in their potential for investment – buying, selling, and trading the digital assets such as artwork or video game items using cryptocurrency. The rise and mid-2022 crash of NFT and associated crypto markets have shown the volatility of the sector, and questions have been raised around the sustainability, environmental impact, and exploitative practices within this space – and whether there are, in fact, any possible socially responsible use cases for NFTs. This paper aims to fill a gap in the literature surrounding NFTs, primarily through a thorough ethical analysis of the technology and its implementation, deployment, and sustainability. To do this, it uses the Association of Computing Machinery's Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct as a framework for analysis and, following this analysis, makes some recommendations for those wishing to investigate and/or implement NFTs in an ethically responsible manner. The key message is that unless there is absolutely no other way to solve a problem other than using NFTs, then they should not be implemented, as there is currently no ethical use case or means of implementation of NFTs.Item Open Access Cross-cultural patterns in mobile playtime: an analysis of 118 billion hours of human data(Springer Nature, 2023-01-07) Zendle, David; Flick, Catherine; Halgarth, Darel; Ballou, Nick; Demediuk, Simon; Drachen, AndersDespite the prevalence of gaming as a human activity, the literature on playtime is uninformed by large-scale, high-quality data. This has led to an evidence-base in which the existence of specific cultural gaming cultures (e.g. exceptional levels of gaming in East Asian nations) are not well-supported by evidence. Here we address this evidence gap by conducting the world’s first large-scale investigation of cross-cultural differences in mobile gaming via telemetry analysis. Our data cover 118 billion hours of playtime occurring in 214 countries and regions between October 2020 and October 2021. A cluster analysis establishes a data-driven set of cross-cultural groupings that describe differences in how the world plays mobile games. Despite contemporary arguments regarding Asian exceptionalism in terms of playtime, analysis shows that many East Asian countries (e.g., China) were not highly differentiated from most high-GDP Northern European nations across several measures of play. Instead, a range of previously unstudied and highly differentiated cross-cultural clusters emerged from the data and are presented here, showcasing the diversity of global gaming.Item Metadata only Designing for Child Resilience(ACM, 2012-05) Flick, Catherine; Duquenoy, Penny; Jones, MattThis short case study describes the design and initial feedback of a color-changing “mood lamp” that allows children to make informed decisions about risk-taking behavior on the internet. Such a device is a case study of an attempt to improve resilience amongst unsupervised children on the internet: an important goal in child protection studies.Item Open Access The Digital Network of Networks: Regulatory Risk and Policy Challenges of Vaccine Passports(Cambridge University Press, 2021-07-12) Wilford, S.; McBride, Neil; Brooks, Laurence; Eke, Damian; Akintoye, Sinmisola; Owoseni, Adebowale; Leach, Tonii; Flick, Catherine; Fisk, Malcolm; Stacey, MartinThe extensive disruption to and digital transformation of travel administration across borders largely due to COVID-19 mean that digital vaccine passports are being developed to resume international travel and kick-start the global economy. Currently, a wide range of actors are using a variety of different approaches and technologies to develop such a system. This paper considers the techno-ethical issues raised by the digital nature of vaccine passports and the application of leading-edge technologies such as blockchain in developing and deploying them. We briefly analyse four of the most advanced systems – IBM’s Digital Health Passport “Common Pass,” the International Air Transport Association’s Travel Pass, the Linux Foundation Public Health’s COVID-19 Credentials Initiative and the Vaccination Credential Initiative (Microsoft and Oracle) – and then consider the approach being taken for the EU Digital COVID Certificate. Each of these raises a range of issues, particularly relating to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the need for standards and due diligence in the application of innovative technologies (eg blockchain) that will directly challenge policymakers when attempting to regulate within the network of networks.Item Open Access Dynamic Technology Challenges Static Codes of Ethics(Orbit Journal, 2017-12-24) Brinkman, Bo; Flick, Catherine; Gotterbarn, D. W.; Miller, Keith; Vazansky, Kate; Wolf, Marty J.We describe the process of changing and the changes being suggested for the ACM Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. In addition to addressing the technical and ethical basis for the proposed changes, we identify suggestions that commenters made in response to the first draft. We invite feedback on the proposed changes and on the suggestions that commenters made.Item Metadata only The empathic care robot: A prototype of responsible research and innovation(Elsevier, 2014) Stahl, Bernd Carsten, 1968-; McBride, Neil; Wakunuma, Kutoma; Flick, CatherineItem Open Access Ethical benchmarks for industry and commerce: a new landscape for responsible innovation(2021-07-01) Fisk, Malcolm; Flick, Catherine; Owoseni, AdebowaleThis paper addresses a 'new landscape' for responsible innovation. It reports on different ethical reference points for industry and commerce. In this context, responsible innovation (and Responsible Research and Innovation, RRI) can be seen as a strand of thinking and doing to be found in several ethically oriented frameworks-including those represented by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and several international standards. Exploration of the new landscape took place within the European Commission funded LIV-IN (Living Innovation) project. This focused on technologies for our lives and our homes in 2030. Published sources, consultations with experts, and workshops with a range of consumers and customers informed the project. Such project activity utilised RRI approaches to explore technological futures for the 'focal' sectors of smart homes and smart living. This was supplemented by a specific dialogue with CSR consultants about the wider potential contribution of RRI (or elements of it) to industry and commerce in the context of other ethically-oriented frameworks.Item Open Access Ethical governance for emerging ICTs: Opening cognitive framing and achieving ethical reflexivity.(Springer, 2010) Goujon, Philippe; Flick, CatherineThe impact of techno-scientific developments on societal evolution and lifestyles no longer needs to be demonstrated. The last half of the twentieth century has witnessed a considerable acceleration of the integration of technological elements, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) into the means of economic production in particular, and social life in general. This article aims to address the methods and practices by which we can effectively open the currently closed cognitive framing of those involved in making ethical governance decisions. This can be done by introducing a second-order reflexivity to allow for accountability and participation in a governance strategy that enables real effectiveness of ethical norm expression in technological projects. This paper draws on the Louvain school of theory of Lenoble and Maesschalk (cf. especially 2006) [10]. The paper’s two authors are both involved in the EGAIS1 and ETICA2 EU FP7 projects where they are further developing and testing out the approach outlined in order to establish an effective ethical governance approach for future European co-financed technology projects.Item Embargo The Ethics of Creative AI(Springer, 2022-11-06) Flick, Catherine; Worrall, KyleCreative AI has had and will continue to have immense impact on creative communities and society more broadly. Along with the great power these techniques provide, come significant ethical responsibilities in their setup, use, and the output works themselves. This chapter sets out the key ethical issues relating to Creative AI: copyright, replacement of authors/artists, bias in datasets, artistic essence, dangerous creations, deepfakes, and physical safety, and looks toward a future where responsible use of Creative AI can help to promote human flourishing within the technosocial landscape. After Vallor (2016), it suggests key technomoral values of honesty, humility, empathy, care, civility and flexibility as those which virtuous creative practitioners will want to embed within any practice conducted using Creative AI techniques.Item Open Access Ethics of Emerging Information and Communication Technologies - On the implementation of responsible research and innovation(Oxford University Press, 2016-09-19) Stahl, Bernd Carsten, 1968-; Flick, Catherine; Timmermans, JobResearch and innovation in emerging technologies can have great benefits but also raise ethical and social concerns. The current discourse on Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) is a novel attempt to come to conceptual and practical ways of dealing with such concerns. In order to effectively understand and address possible ethical and social issues, stakeholders need to have an understanding of what such issues might be. This paper explores ethical issues related to the field of emerging information and communication technologies (ICTs). Based on a foresight study of ICT that led to the identification of eleven emerging technologies, we outline the field of ethical and social issues of these technologies. This overview of possible problems can serve as an important sensitising device to these issues. We describe how such awareness can contribute to the successful deployment of responsible practice in research and innovation.Item Embargo The ethics of human-chicken relationships in video games(ACM SIGCAS, 2016-01-05) Flick, Catherine; Fothergill, B. TyrIn this paper, we look at the historical place that chickens have held in media depictions and as entertainment, analyse several types of representations of chickens in video games, and draw out reflections on society in the light of these representations. We also look at real-life, modern historical, and archaeological evidence of chicken treatment and the evolution of social attitudes with regard to animal rights, and deconstruct the depiction of chickens in video games in this light.Item Open Access ETICA workshop on computer ethics: Exploring normative issues.(Springer, 2011) Stahl, Bernd Carsten, 1968-; Flick, CatherineThe ETICA project aims to identify emerging information and communication technologies. These technologies are then analysed and evaluated from an ethical perspective. The aim of this analysis is to suggest possible governance arrangements that will allow paying proactive attention to such ethical issues. During the ETICA workshop at the summer school, participants were asked to choose one of the 11 technologies that ETICA had identified. For each of these technologies there was a detailed description developed by work package 1 of the project. Workshop participants were asked to reflect on the ethical issues they saw as relevant and likely to arise from the technology. This paper discusses the ethical views of the workshop participants and contrasts them with the findings of the ethical analysis within the ETICA project.Item Open Access Exploring simulated game worlds: Ethics in the No Man’s Sky Archaeological Survey(ORBIT, 2017-10-24) Flick, Catherine; Dennis, L. Meghan; Reinhard, AndrewNo Man’s Sky is an open world space procedural exploration game which allows players to traverse space in space ships, land on and explore planets. A group of archaeogamers (archaeologists interested in video games for varying reasons) decided to treat the game as an archaeological site, and within the No Man’s Sky Archaeological Survey explore, catalogue findings, and analyze objects and constructs within the game from an archaeological perspective. One of the aspects of this activity was to create a Code of Ethics – this paper describes the creation of the Code, the difficulties in implementation of the Code, and offers some recommendations to game developers who wish to encourage similar archaeological exploration within their own games.