How the new Software Engineering Code of Ethics affects you

The Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice has recently been approved. This article looks at the immediate and long-term implications: Why does a profession need a code of ethics? How will this code function in an emerging profession like software engineering? What impact will it have on software practitioners?     

The Public is the Priority: Making Decisions Using the Software Engineering Code of Ethics

The Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice encourages software engineers to undertake positive actions and to resist pressures to act unethically.     

Unmasking Your Software's Ethical Risks

Software engineers need to anticipate unintended consequences, including negative impacts on society, individuals, and the environment. Even developers with the best of intentions can walk into ethical traps. This article includes four suggestions for software engineers during system development to help recognize these traps: (1) Look for humans values in technical decisions. (2) Identify stakeholders—groups and individuals likely to be affected by the system. (3) Examine how the system will affect the stakeholders' rights and obligations. (4) Review relevant professional standards.     

The ethics of video games: Mayhem,death, and the training of the next generation

There is a significant and previously unidentified ethics problem with many e-games; many of them are designed in such a way that they encourage and train game players to follow a narrow and dangerous model of decision making. It is argued that extending this model of decision making beyond an e-game’s virtual reality has significant negative societal consequences. Unfortunately most e-game courses focus primarily on game engine design and other technical issues. E-game curricula and e-game designers need to follow standards which recognize this ethical concern and recognize that their work is not independent from the societal impacts of the technology they develop. Modifying design approaches can reduce the problems caused by the ethical decision making model.     

Editorial: Ethics and Software Quality

Editorial Introduction

Editorial: Ethics and Software Quality