Responsible Management of Information Systems by Bernd Stahl

Author:Bernd Stahl [Stahl, Bernd]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Moral and ethical aspects, Management, Social Aspects, Computers, Information Management, Information resources management, General, Leadership, Business & Economics, Social responsibility of business, Business Ethics, Management Information Systems, Information Technology
ISBN: 9781591401728
Publisher: Idea Group Inc (IGI)
Published: 2004-02-15T08:00:00+00:00

REFLECTIVE APPLICATION OF THE SHARED FEATURES OF RESPONSIBILITY

What exactly does it mean to apply responsibility reflectively? It can certainly mean many things, not all of which can be analysed here. For our purposes it should be enough to emphasise the three main characteristics of responsibility and check whether the use of the notion does in fact lead to openness, proximity to action, and the consideration of consequences. The leading question for this self-application may be: Can we approve of the use of the term responsibility and its results from the point of view of a theory of responsibility? [14] Another similar question might be: Is it an act of responsibility to speak of responsibility and what does the speaker have to do to make sure it is?

These questions are probably easier to answer with regard to given applications. To give a specific answer, one would need to choose a certain realisation of responsibility and then check whether or not this application adheres to the underlying logic of responsibility. This will be done later on with regard to different aspects of business information technology. In order to do this, however, it is helpful to consider the reflective properties of responsibility from a theoretical perspective first.

The first point, the openness of responsibility, does not seem to pose too much of a problem. Openness of responsibility is almost guaranteed by its communicative nature. As we have seen before, responsibility is by its very definition a concept that relies on the inclusion of the affected parties. The subject, usually the agent responsible for an act, a decision, etc., has to answer to the instance because of what happened or may happen insofar as the rights of others are concerned. This should include the hearing of everybody involved. Otherwise it would be impossible to know exactly what the object of responsibility is and what makes it something that is ascribed to somebody. From a practical point of view, this poses relevant problems, as it may prove impossible to even find out who or what exactly is affected. Even if this is known, it may prove impossible to hear all affected parties. Theoretically, however, the use of the notion of responsibility as an attempt to address moral matters is consistent in this regard since it points in the direction of the openness of the answer. Responsibility goes even further than just a simple discussion of moral questions because it allows the social construction of reality. That means that in the communicative process, which constitutes the ascription of responsibility and the following answer, more than normative rules and morality are discussed and assessed. Communication comprises the agreement concerning reality in a specific case and its relevance to moral questions.

While the use of the term responsibility clearly seems to be responsible in that it conveys a sense of openness, which is characteristic for the term, the reflective application is less clear-cut where it comes to the second feature, the affinity to action. As mentioned, the appeal of the

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