Abstract

MORA ORTIZ, Andrés Mauricio; RIVAS FRANCO, Pablo Andrés  and  MERLYN SACOTO, Marie-France. Moral reasoning among Systems Engineering students: ethical conflicts over Information Technology. Escritos de Psicología [online]. 2020, vol.13, n.2, pp.60-70.  Epub Sep 20, 2021. ISSN 1989-3809.  https://dx.doi.org/10.24310/espsiescpsi.v13i2.12410.

This study investigated the relationship between the processes of moral reasoning (emotional and rational) and the way ethical conflicts were solved in relation to Information Technology (IT). To this end, a sample of 177 Systems Engineering students (83% men, 17% women) aged 17 to 26 years completed the 'Ethical IT Survey' and a questionnaire to measure moral reasoning. The results show differences in the scores obtained for the four categories of scenarios analyzed, placing the responses to the topics of Privacy and Property in the ethically questionable category and those of Precision and Accessibility within the unethical category. The dominant type of reasoning was emotional. Furthermore, more than half of the participants reported having engaged in unethical behavior regarding the categories of Property and Accessibility, suggesting a discrepancy between the cognitive appreciation of the ethical conflict and engaging in behaviors related to these issues. In conclusion, we suggest that the training of such students should emphasize the relevance of ethics regarding IT-related issues.

Keywords : Moral reasoning; Information Technology; Ethics.

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