Ethical Point Of View Research Articles

Beyond Usability: A Critical Analysis of Interface Research

This article addresses the profound and multifaceted understanding of interfaces in the modern technological era, focusing on integrating ontological, ethical, and aesthetical approaches in interface research. It considers various aspects of human-machine interaction from philosophical, ethical, and aesthetic viewpoints, revealing the complex connections between technological progress and human experience. This study provides a comprehensive analysis of contemporary approaches to interface research, covering its complexity and diversity, as well as identifying current trends and challenges in the field. The findings indicate that successful interface study requires an integrated approach, including the analysis of functional, ethical, aesthetic, and cultural aspects. The article highlights the importance of cross-disciplinary research in developing interfaces that can reflect and develop contemporary cultural and social contexts. The conclusions of this article are relevant to the researchers in the field of interface design, implementators, and a broad audience interested in understanding the interplay between technological innovations and the socio-cultural context.

Perceptions of Animal Welfare on Livestock: Evidence from College Agronomy Students in Costa Rica.

Ethical considerations regarding our treatment of animals have gained strength, leading to legislation and a societal focus across various disciplines. This is a subject of study within curricula related to agri-food sciences. The aim was to determine the perceptions of agronomy university students concerning animal welfare in livestock production systems. A survey was conducted to encompass various aspects, from participants' sociodemographic attributes to their attitudes and behaviors regarding animal welfare and the consumption of animal products. Statistical analysis, performed using R software, delved into the associations between participants' characteristics and their perspectives on the ethical, bioethical, and legal dimensions of animal welfare. Associations between demographic factors and ethical viewpoints among students were identified. Gender differences emerged in animal treatment perceptions, while rural and urban environments impacted perspectives on various animals. Bioethical considerations revealed distinctive disparities based on gender and education in concerns regarding animal welfare, value perceptions, evaluations of animal behaviors, and opinions on animal research. It is crucial to distinguish between animal welfare and the ethical considerations arising from coexisting with sentient beings capable of experiencing suffering. Ethical theories provide a lens through which we perceive our obligations toward animals. The responsibility to ensure animal welfare is firmly rooted in recognizing that animals, like humans, experience pain and physical suffering. Consequently, actions causing unjustified suffering or mistreatment, particularly for entertainment purposes, are considered morally unacceptable.

Animal Rights in Greece: Legislation and Perceptions

Animal rights are a controversial issue that often causes ethical dilemmas within modern civilization. Philosophical thought plays a key role in this debate, through various theories that put forward the establishment of moral rights to animals. All this is also reflected in the adoption of strict legal frameworks in favor of animal protection throughout the Western world. In Greece, in recent years huge steps have been taken compared to the past and now a fairly strict legal framework has been adopted for the protection of animals (mainly companion animals) but also for the obligations of their owners. Nevertheless, animal abuse in Greece continues almost on a daily basis. To better understand the parameters that determine the human-animal relationship from an ethical point of view, an empirical study was conducted as part of an ongoing research investigating the perception and level of familiarity of university instructors on this topic. Research findings refer to four thematic categories: a) legal framework, b) animal rights-ethics, c) experimental animals, d) technology and animals and show that the academic background of the participants generally does not play a significant role in their answers.

Informed consent and trial prioritization for clinical studies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Stakeholder experiences and viewpoints.

Very little is known about the practice-oriented challenges and potential response strategies for effective and efficient translation of informed consent and study prioritization in times of a pandemic. This stakeholder interview study aimed to identify the full spectrum of challenges and potential response strategies for informed consent and study prioritization in a pandemic setting. We performed semi-structured interviews with German stakeholders involved in clinical research during the COVID-19 pandemic. We continued sampling and thematic text analysis of interview transcripts until thematic saturation of challenges and potential response strategies was reached. We conducted 21 interviews with investigators, oversight bodies, funders and research support units. For the first topic informed consent we identified three main themes: consent challenges, impact of consent challenges on clinical research, and potential strategies for consent challenges. For the second topic prioritization of clinical studies, we identified two main themes: perceived benefit of prioritization and potential strategies for prioritization. All main themes are further specified with subthemes. A supplementary table provides original quotes from the interviews for all subthemes. Potential response strategies for challenges with informed consent and study prioritization partly share common ground. High quality procedures for study prioritization, for example, seem to be a core response strategy in dealing with informed consent challenges. Especially in a research environment with particularly high uncertainty regarding potential treatment effects and further limitations for valid informed consent should the selection of clinical trials be very well justified from a scientific, medical, and ethics viewpoint.

Reducing Health Inequalities: Development of a Stepwise Procedure from Data to Political Interventions

Low socioeconomic status (assessed by indicators such as educational level or income) is often associated with increased morbidity and mortality. This has been shown in many empirical studies, also in Germany. There are numerous calls for political interventions aimed at reducing these health inequalities, in scientific discussions as well as in the public. Asked for scientifically based recommendations on how to proceed 'from data to action̓, we have to admit that we are still faced with many questions and few answers. Developing these recommendations poses many challenges such as, for example, how to integrate the expertise from different public health disciplines. The present study focuses on the cooperation between social epidemiology, public health ethics and health economics, as we believe that these three disciplines are of particular importance here. We briefly outline what each of them could contribute to the development of practical interventions aimed at reducing health inequalities. We particularly emphasize the importance of public health ethics, as it focuses on questions that to date have largely been neglected in the German discussion: How can we evaluate the empirical data and the proposed political interventions from an ethical point of view? Which health inequalities are 'unjust̓, and how can this normative judgement be justified? Based on the expertise from the three disciplines mentioned above, the aim is to pave the way 'from data to action̓ by developing a well-structured stepwise procedure for interventions aimed at reducing health inequalities. The joint scheme could be very beneficial not only for developing practical interventions, but also for further developing each discipline in itself. The simple scheme proposed here could be a starting point that helps specify many open questions on this path 'from data to action̓.

A holistic view of human rights and its application in the context of infectious disease pandemics

Under the new coronavirus epidemic, the implementation of public health measures has generated some resistance in countries around the world. The essence of examining the human rights claims of those who oppose the epidemic is that they have a too narrow understanding of individual human rights and ignore the obligation implications of human rights itself. From the historical point of view, health and epidemic prevention is the objective necessity of the survival and development of human society; From the ethical point of view, the joint fight against the epidemic is the moral obligation of the coordinated development of individuals and society. From the normative point of view, the management of infectious diseases is the basic consensus established by many international conventions. To correct the narrow understanding of individual human rights concept, the global human rights concept should be established in pandemic governance, and the concept of human health community should be shaped in the pandemic convention to build governance consensus, implement the same health concept to clarify the scope of governance, implement the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, and strengthen the participation of individuals and communities in public health governance to improve governance paths. To shape a more reasonable and effective pandemic governance order.

Will Customers’ Understanding of the Trolley Dilemma Hinder Their Adoption of Robotaxi?

Robotaxi, coined from “robot” and “taxi”, refers to a taxi service with vehicles controlled by self-driving algorithms instead of human drivers. Despite the availability of such a service, it is yet unknown whether customers will adopt robotaxi, given its immaturity. Meanwhile, the potential customers of the robotaxi service are facing an inescapable ethics issue, the “trolley dilemma”, which might have a strong impact on their adoption of the service. Based on the necessity of understanding robotaxi adoption, especially from an ethical point of view, this study aims to uncover and quantify the antecedents of robotaxi adoption, taking the trolley dilemma into consideration. We applied a modified Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) framework to explore the antecedents of robotaxi adoption, with a special focus on customers’ understanding of the trolley dilemma. We conducted online surveys (N = 299) to obtain the customers’ opinions regarding robotaxis. Aside from measuring standard variables in UTAUT, we developed four proprietary items to measure trolley dilemma relevance. We also randomly assigned the participants to two groups, either group A or group B. Participants in group A are told that all robotaxis are programmed with a utilitarian algorithm, such that when facing a trolley dilemma, the robotaxi will conditionally compromise the passenger(s) to save a significantly larger group of pedestrians. In the meantime, participants in group B are informed that all robotaxis are programmed with an egocentric algorithm, such that when facing a trolley dilemma, the robotaxi will always prioritize the safety of the passenger(s). Our findings suggest that both performance expectancy and effort expectancy have a positive influence on robotaxi adoption intention. As for the trolley dilemma, customers regard it as of high relevance to robotaxis. Moreover, if the robotaxi is programmed with an egocentric algorithm, the customers are significantly more willing to adopt the service. Our paper contributes to both adoption studies and ethics studies. We add to UTAUT two new constructs, namely trolley dilemma relevance and trolley dilemma algorithm, which can be generalized to adapt to other new technologies involving ethics issues. We also directly ask customers to assess the relevance and algorithm of the trolley dilemma, which is a meaningful supplement to existing ethics studies that mostly debate from researchers’ perspectives. Meanwhile, our paper is managerially meaningful as it provides solid suggestions for robotaxi companies’ marketing campaigns.

Brain Health and Well-Being in Older Adults: Innovations in Lifestyle Interventions

The first goal of this session is to provide clinicians with current evidence-based guidance on helping older adult patients to make lifestyle changes that promote brain health and well-being from the perspectives of healthy (1) physical and cognitive exercise, (2) nutrition, (3) sleep and (4) mindfulness. The strengths and limitations of current data regarding these four topics will be discussed, so that clinicians can offer their older adult patients relevant, informed guidance on lifestyle changes that can credibly enhance brain health and well-being.The second goal is to discuss the gaps in knowledge in these four areas, including ethical and legal viewpoints and ramifications, to support the development of innovative clinical, research and administrative/systemic strategies and guidelines for the benefit of older adults.

Delving into sustainability reporting literature: The role of ethics

Research background: After major scandals in apparently reputable and solvent companies, added to the great economic crises of recent decades, accounting and finance have become a fundamental discipline for the correct study of these events from an ethical point of view. Philosophers, economists and even religious people have wanted to contribute their grain of sand to the study of the ethical behaviour of companies and make it go beyond mere administration. In recent years, non-financial reporting has been gaining ground, to the point that the legal system now makes it compulsory in most Western countries. Purpose of the article: This study aims to review and summarize the role of ethics in the sustainability reporting so as to develop a holistic framework of ethics in the sustainability reporting; review the evolution of the research field; and identify the most significant research tendencies enabling the proposal of several future research directions. Methods: Using the Scopus and Web of Science databases, a bibliometric analysis has been carried out in the field of accounting on this topic from its formal origins in the 1980s to the present day, in addition to highlighting the importance of sustainability. 271 articles have been used as a basis for developing the main trends at bibliographic, geographical and institutional levels. Findings & value added: This study highlights the importance of incorporating ethics in non-financial information as a field of research, through two very different lines of research that have gained importance in recent years: ethics in business and the growing relevance of non-financial information. It also incorporates a bibliometric analysis with information obtained from two major databases: Scopus and Web of Science. The use of both databases makes it possible to broaden the body of articles covered, compared to other bibliometric analyses previously carried out on similar topics, and allows for the inclusion of more relevant articles on this subject.

Этико-философские аспекты цифровой танатологии

Modern man’s digital being has changed his attitude towards the most important cultural existentials, including the problem of death, which was sacred in previous eras. The article analyzes the characteristics of digital thanatology and raises the philosophical questions about the modes of digital afterlife. From an ethical and legal point of view, the article draws attention to the need to legally restrict the circulation on the Internet of the content depicting the bodies or parts of the bodies of military personnel killed in combat zones. The article analyzes moral and ethical nuances of new socio-cultural practices: selfies with the dead; streaming from funerals, creation of digital cemeteries and sharing of medical autopsy videos on Internet platforms. The author proposes the inclusuion of “Digital Ethics” course in the university curriculum on Ethics in order to prevent the devaluation of the problem of death under the influence of digitalization.

THE POSSIBILITIES OF A SYSTEMS APPROACH IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENTS' INFORMATION COMPETENCE

The article examines the role and possibilities of a systematic approach in the development of students' information competence. Today, information competence is becoming one of the main skills in the digital age. The ability to effectively find, analyze, and evaluate information is necessary to adapt to modern society. This includes not only technical skills but also the ability to search for information from reliable sources, think critically, and use information from an ethical point of view. In this regard, the development of students' information competence becomes an important task of educational institutions. It is obvious that students with a high level of information competence will also be successful in their studies and future professional activities. Therefore, the process of developing students' information competence should be carried out systematically and include various educational methods and techniques.In accordance with the research topic, the article presents an overview of scientific research by domestic and foreign scientists. Based on it the author analyzes the effectiveness of a systematic approach in the context of the development of information skills and critical thinking of students. In the modern educational context, the importance of an integrated and systematic approach to learning is emphasized, contributing to the comprehensive development of students' information competencies. The results of the study provide opportunities and recommendations, considering the development of students' information competence as a comprehensively organized unified system.

Digital Companions for Well-being: Challenges and Opportunities

Humans have evolved to seek social connections, extending beyond interactions with living beings. The digitization of society has led to interactions with non-living entities, such as digital companions, aimed at supporting mental well-being. This literature review surveys the latest developments in digital companions for mental health, employing a hybrid search strategy that identified 67 relevant articles from 2014 to 2022. We identified that by the nature of the digital companions’ purposes, it is important to consider person profiles for: a) to generate both person-oriented and empathetic responses from these virtual companions, b) to keep track of the person’s conversations, activities, therapy, and progress, and c) to allow portability and compatibility between digital companions. We established a taxonomy for digital companions in the scope of mental well-being. We also identified open challenges in the scope of digital companions related to ethical, technical, and socio-technical points of view. We provided documentation about what these issues mean, and discuss possible alternatives to approach them.

The Aesthetic Fashioning of the Self: Failure of Dissensual Subjectivity in The Hairy Ape

ABSTRACT In The Hairy Ape Eugene O’Neill reveals the instrumental control of society and accentuates the decline of an authentic self-relation against the backdrop of capitalist modernity. He creates an alienated and robotized character who breaks free of his designated role as a docile subject. This article draws upon the later work of Michel Foucault, especially his notions of care of the self and aesthetic self-fashioning, in order to consider the consequences of an ethical viewpoint toward subjectivity in O’Neill’s play. Associating Foucault’s concept of care of the self with social action, this article argues that Yank’s desire to act emanates from his ethical commitment to subjectivity and agency, but he fails because biopower contains and eliminates any resistance that calls its authority into question. It is the author’s contention that he carries the weight of revolt alone and thus cannot experience a self-fashioned form of subjectivity without bringing ruin upon himself.

‶Don’t Say Neigh, Say Yay”

‶Don’t Say Neigh, Say Yay”

Why Do I Choose an Animal Model or an Alternative Method in Basic and Preclinical Biomedical Research? A Spectrum of Ethically Relevant Reasons and Their Evaluation.

Research model selection decisions in basic and preclinical biomedical research have not yet been the subject of an ethical investigation. Therefore, this paper aims, (1) to identify a spectrum of reasons for choosing between animal and alternative research models (e.g., based on in vitro or in silico models) and (2) provides an ethical analysis of the selected reasons. In total, 13 researchers were interviewed; the interviews were analyzed qualitatively. The ethical analysis was based on the principlism approach and a value judgement model. This paper presents 66 reasons underlying the choice of researchers using animal (27 reasons) or alternative models (39). Most of the reasons were assigned to the work environment (29) and scientific standards (22). Other reasons were assigned to personal attitudes (11) and animal welfare (4). Qualitative relevant normative differences are presented in the ethical analysis. Even if few reasons can be rejected outright from an ethical point of view, there are good reasons to give some more weight than others. The spectrum of reasons and their ethical assessment provide a framework for reflection for researchers who may have to choose between animal models and (investing in) alternatives. This can help to reflect on and ethically justify decisions.

Conscientious objection and barriers to abortion within a specific regional context - an expert interview study.

While most countries that allow abortion on women's request also grant physicians a right to conscientious objection (CO), this has proven to constitute a potential barrier to abortion access. Conscientious objection is regarded as an understudied phenomenon the effects of which have not yet been examined in Germany. Based on expert interviews, this study aims to exemplarily reconstruct the processes of abortion in a mid-sized city in Germany, and to identify potential effects of conscientious objection. Five semi-structured interviews with experts from all instances involved have been conducted in April 2020. The experts gave an insight into the medical care structures with regard to abortion procedures, the application and manifestations of conscientious objection in medical practice, and its impact on the care of pregnant women. A content analysis of the transcribed interviews was performed. Both the procedural processes and the effects of conscientious objection are reported to differ significantly between early abortions performed before the 12th week of pregnancy and late abortions performed at the second and third trimester. Conscientious objection shows structural consequences as it is experienced to further reduce the number of possible providers, especially for early abortions. On the individual level of the doctor-patient relationship, the experts confirmed the neutrality and patient-orientation of the vast majority of doctors. Still, it is especially late abortions that seem to be vulnerable to barriers imposed by conscientious objection in individual medical encounters. Our findings indicate that conscientious objection possibly imposes barriers to both early and late abortion provision and especially in the last procedural steps, which from an ethical point of view is especially problematic. To oblige hospitals to partake in abortion provision in Germany has the potential to prevent negative impacts of conscientious objection on women's rights on an individual as well as on a structural level.

Entrepreneurial Responsibility: A Conceptual Framework to Understand Ethical Dualism Throughout the Entrepreneurial Process

Entrepreneurs have been promoted as a main engine of progress. However, recent scandals and questionable behavior have led to increased discussion of entrepreneurs’ ethics. The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize entrepreneurial responsibility throughout the entrepreneurial process from an ethical viewpoint. We model entrepreneurial responsibility based on normative ethics (deontology and teleology), enabling us to better understand entrepreneurs’ active and conscious responses to their ethical duties and the consequences thereof. Our theorizing opens new avenues for scholarly research related to the ethical nature of opportunities, the interconnection of entrepreneurial intentions and outcomes from a moral perspective, and potential societal impact.

Drug Promotions Between Ethics, Regulations, and Financial Interests.

The promotion of the latest medicines produced by the pharmaceutical industry is an important issue both from an ethical point of view (the level of accessibility, the way research is carried out) and from the point of view of marketing and especially from the lobbying issues raised. The ethical dilemmas raised by the promotion of new drugs revolve between the need to discover new molecules important for treating a wide range of diseases and the need to establish a battery of ethical rules, absolutely necessary for regulations in the field to be compliant with all ethical principles. A literature search was conducted through PubMed, MEDLINE, Plus, Scopus, and Web of Science (2015-2023) using combinations of keywords, including drugs, medical publicity, and pharma marketing plus ethical dilemma. The promotion of medicines is governed by advertising laws and regulations in many countries, including at EU level, based on the need for countries to ensure that the promotion and advertising of medicines is truthful, based on information understood by consumers. The ethical analysis of the issues raised is more necessary and complex as the channels used for promotion are more accessible to the population, and the information, easier to obtain, can be the cause of increased self-medication and overeating. Large amounts of money invested in the development of new molecules, but also the risk of scientific fraud through manipulation of data during clinical trials, selective or biased publication of information can have repercussions on the health of the population. The development of new pharmaceutical molecules is necessary to intervene and treat as many conditions as possible, but marketing must not neglect the observance of ethical principles. The promotion of medicines should be the attribute especially of the medical staff, which should also be a mandatory part of the mechanism for approving the marketing methods and means used by the pharmaceutical companies.

What is Spanish regulation on the application of artificial intelligence to medicine like?

This article will attempt to analyze the current impact of Artificial Intelligence in Spanish healthcare, as well as the challenges that its application poses both from an ethical and legal point of view. Technological advances, which are already being applied in healthcare, make it necessary to adapt the legal system to the new trends that are emerging in society and force healthcare professionals to review their codes of ethics in the face of new ethical dilemmas, since these codes of ethics do not have clear guidelines for action on AI that raise relevant ethical problems to which no response is being given, except for the code of ethics for medicine, which has recently been included. After a review of the last 5 years of Spanish and European regulations in medicine, it can be concluded that the regulation and legislation of the application of AI is very deficient, both in the EU and in Spain. In order to try to identify different ways of resolving conflicts related to AI in medicine, jurisprudential sentences related to the rights and obligations of health professionals, patients and users have been analyzed and reviewed. Therefore, the paper concludes with the proposal of a series of aspects to be taken into account for the future regulation of the application of AI in medicine.

Brain organoids and organoid intelligence from ethical, legal, and social points of view.

Human brain organoids, aka cerebral organoids or earlier "mini-brains", are 3D cellular models that recapitulate aspects of the developing human brain. They show tremendous promise for advancing our understanding of neurodevelopment and neurological disorders. However, the unprecedented ability to model human brain development and function in vitro also raises complex ethical, legal, and social challenges. Organoid Intelligence (OI) describes the ongoing movement to combine such organoids with Artificial Intelligence to establish basic forms of memory and learning. This article discusses key issues regarding the scientific status and prospects of brain organoids and OI, conceptualizations of consciousness and the mind-brain relationship, ethical and legal dimensions, including moral status, human-animal chimeras, informed consent, and governance matters, such as oversight and regulation. A balanced framework is needed to allow vital research while addressing public perceptions and ethical concerns. Interdisciplinary perspectives and proactive engagement among scientists, ethicists, policymakers, and the public can enable responsible translational pathways for organoid technology. A thoughtful, proactive governance framework might be needed to ensure ethically responsible progress in this promising field.