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We'll define Ethical Design and explain how it relates to other terms, such as inclusive design, usability, accessibility, privacy, universal design, and human-centered design.
New Terms:
- Ethical design: Design ethics concerns moral behavior and responsible choices in the practice of design. It guides how designers work with clients, colleagues, and the end-users of products, how they conduct the design process, how they determine the features of products, and how they assess the ethical significance or moral worth of the products that result from the activity of designing. source: Encyclopedia.com
- Overton window: the range of policies deemed acceptable to the mainstream population at a given time. source: Wikipedia
Further Reading:
- The Tragic Design Book - by Jonathan Shariat and Cynthia Savard Saucier
- Ethical Design Manifesto - by Ind.ie, creators of the "Ethical Hierarchy of Needs"
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0:00
MICHELLE: Hey there, I'm Michelle Zohlman.
0:09
My pronouns are she/her.
0:11
I work at Treehouse as
the training program manager.
0:13
Today, I'll be co-presenting this course
with my colleague, Hope Armstrong.
0:17
This course will introduce ethical design,
0:22
which considers the moral
implication of one's work.
0:25
With all of the power
that technology yields,
0:28
it comes with tremendous responsibility.
0:31
We'll reflect on how tricky interfaces and
0:34
dirty data practices have
negative consequences on society.
0:37
You'll use ethical frameworks and
tools to evaluate and
0:41
align your actions with your values.
0:45
And to wrap things up, we'll look at
advocacy techniques to nurture human
0:48
centered decisions in your organization.
0:52
This course is for everyone who works
in tech, regardless of their role.
0:54
I'll use the term design in the general
sense to refer to those who design,
0:59
develop, deploy, and manage technology.
1:04
Let's get started by
defining ethical design.
1:07
Design ethics concerns moral behavior and
1:12
responsible choices in
the practice of design.
1:14
It guides how designers work with clients,
colleagues, and the end users of products.
1:18
How they conduct the design process.
1:23
How they determine
the features of products,
1:26
and how they assess
the ethical significance or
1:29
moral worth of the products that
result from the activity of designing.
1:32
The book Tragic Design
summarizes it like this.
1:37
"Badly designed products
serve their creator or
1:40
sponsor first and the users second."
1:45
In 2015, Volkswagen was issued a violation
of the Clean Air Act in the United States.
1:49
The Environmental Protection Agency
discovered Volkswagen intentionally
1:54
programmed diesel engines to activate their
emissions control only during inspections.
1:59
The cars appear to pass air quality
standards during testing although
2:05
they created up to 40 times
the emissions in real-world driving.
2:10
The software was placed in 11 million
cars worldwide, leading to a massive
2:14
increase in greenhouse gas emissions
that contribute to climate change.
2:19
This scandal has cost Volkswagen at
least an estimated $33.3 billion.
2:24
A software engineer was
sentenced to federal prison for
2:31
implementing the software.
2:34
This is just one example of how
software has real world consequences.
2:36
HOPE: Hi, I'm Hope Armstrong.
2:42
I'm a Product Designer and Teacher at
Treehouse, and my pronouns are she/her.
2:44
Let's look at an ethical framework.
2:50
Here's the ethical hierarchy of needs as
defined by Aral Balkan and Laura Kalbag.
2:53
The most foundational
section is human rights.
2:59
This is when technology respects and
protects civil liberties,
3:03
reduces inequalities,
and benefits democracy.
3:08
Building off of that,
human effort is when technology respects
3:12
people's effort by being functional,
convenient, and reliable.
3:16
At the top of the pyramid
is human experience,
3:21
which is when technology is intuitive and
joyful to use.
3:25
MICHELLE: We can use this framework when
evaluating the morality of our work.
3:29
You may have heard the terms
inclusive design, usability,
3:34
accessibility, universal design,
and human-centered design.
3:38
These are related terms that evoke
the humanity involved with technology.
3:43
After all, as much as we focus
on technology being built,
3:48
we need to consider the people it affects.
3:52
So what does it mean to act ethically?
3:56
Well, it's complicated.
3:59
Each of us has different boundaries for
safety and privacy, and
4:01
our identity and
personal experiences shape our needs.
4:06
If you have a history of being
racially discriminated against,
4:10
you may hesitate to disclose
your identity on a forum.
4:14
And there are cultural differences too.
4:17
What is acceptable in one country may
be negatively perceived in another.
4:20
Further, it changes over time.
4:25
The term Overton window
explains this phenomenon.
4:28
An Overton window is the range
of policies deemed acceptable to
4:32
the mainstream population at a given time.
4:36
A few decades ago,
putting a listening device in
4:40
your living room would have felt extreme,
as if you're wiretapping yourself.
4:43
But now that voice activated devices
are so common, it's normalized.
4:47
Although it's still a bit creepy if you
really think about the implications.
4:53
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