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Informatics and professional responsibility.

D Gotterbarn1

  • 1Computer and Information Sciences, East Tennessee State University, Box 70711, Johnson City, TN 37614, USA. gotterba@access.etsu.edu

Science and Engineering Ethics
|May 15, 2001
PubMed
Summary

Software developers often avoid responsibility, leading to project issues. Adopting a positive responsibility framework can significantly improve software development outcomes and reduce problems.

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Area of Science:

  • Computer Science
  • Software Engineering
  • Professional Ethics

Background:

  • Many software development challenges stem from a limited view of professional accountability.
  • Developers have historically employed strategies to evade responsibility for their contributions.
  • This avoidance contributes to project failures and ethical dilemmas in the tech industry.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze the various methods software developers use to avoid professional responsibility.
  • To propose an expanded definition of positive responsibility for software engineers.
  • To demonstrate how embracing this enhanced responsibility can mitigate common software development problems.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of existing research on software engineering ethics and professional responsibility.
  • Categorization and analysis of identified responsibility avoidance tactics.
  • Conceptual development of a positive responsibility framework.

Main Results:

  • A comprehensive catalog of common responsibility avoidance strategies in software development was identified.
  • An expanded concept of positive responsibility, emphasizing proactive engagement and accountability, was formulated.
  • The study posits that adopting this positive responsibility model can lead to improved software quality and fewer project issues.

Conclusions:

  • A narrow understanding of professional responsibility is a root cause of many software development problems.
  • Implementing a proactive and expanded sense of positive responsibility is crucial for ethical and effective software engineering.
  • Adoption of positive responsibility can lead to a reduction in development challenges and enhance overall project success.

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