Good Enough Ethics by Design: AI and Alternative Digital Realities

Date

2026-04-15

Advisors

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

ISSN

DOI

Volume Title

Publisher

Palgrave Macmillan

Type

Book

Peer reviewed

Yes

Abstract

Good Enough Ethics explores how society can ethically navigate the accelerating complexity of technological innovation. Tracing developments from cave paintings to the industrial age to AI and the Metaverse, the book explores reactive approaches - such as GDPR and the Online Safety Act - and examines proactive strategies like Ethics by Design, which integrates ethics throughout product development. Yet such frameworks often prove too rigid or burdensome in practice. Inspired by Donald Winnicott’s idea of good enough parenting, the authors propose Good Enough Ethics (GEE) - a pragmatic, flexible model that balances ethical responsibility with real-world constraints. Rather than aiming for perfection, GEE emphasises empowering technologists to act ethically without paralysis. Based on research from the EU-funded SHARESPACE project, the book shows how GEE can be applied across emerging technologies and calls for an iterative, inclusive ethics culture - one that embeds reflection into innovation without stifling it.

Description

Good Enough Ethics by Design: AI and Alternative Digital Realities is based on research from the EU-funded SHARESPACE project, the book shows how GEE can be applied across emerging technologies and calls for an iterative, inclusive ethics culture - one that embeds reflection into innovation without stifling it.

Keywords

ethics by design, good enough ethics, ai, vr, xr, ethics, ethics of technology, artifical intelligence, virtual reality, extended reality

Citation

Richardson, K. and Bryson, K. and Sutherland, J. (2026) Good Enough Ethics by Design: AI and Alternative Digital Realities. Palgrave Macmillan, London, UK

Rights

Research Institute