This is a fascinating book which brings together the theoretical world of ethics and the practical world of business information systems. It is a marriage based on responsibility. Always being careful to define his terms, the author leads us through the concepts and application of responsibility as they are currently perceived within computing. Challenging the norm with his suggestions regarding reflective responsibility he leaves the reader with much food for thought and a new path to tread.
– Professor Simon Rogerson, Director of the Centre for Computing and Social Responsibility, De Montfort University, UK
This is an important book. It takes on the daunting challenge of developing a philosophical foundation for the new and rapidly growing field of ICT Ethics. The resulting analysis of responsibility, ethics and morality is a major contribution to the field -- and indeed to Philosophy itself --and it constitutes the deepest and richest foundation for ICT Ethics that I have seen. The impressive and very effective introduction of ideas from Kant, Habermas, Montaigne and Ricoeur constitute a refreshing and very promising new departure in ICT Ethics.
– Professor Terrell Ward Bynum, Director, Research Center On Computing & Society, Southern Connecticut State University, USA
With meticulous care, Stahl develops the case needed for a philosophically justified - but also entirely practical - notion of ethical responsibility in the world of Information Technology. This book will amply reward close study by applied ethicists and anyone in Information Technology who is seriously interested in coming to grips with the complex realities and difficulties of ethical decision-making. Stahl develops an exceptionally robust ethical foundation that conjoins French, German, and English ethical traditions. He thereby makes important theoretical literatures accessible to English readers - and, still more importantly, develops an important synthesis of these national traditions that provides a broader, more international foundation. Such a genuinely international ethical foundation is required, of course, for IT as an ever more international enterprise. At the same time, Stahl succeeds thereby in developing a thoroughly practical ethic of reflexive responsibility that contributes significantly to the discussion and literature of applied ethics and Information Ethics. Perhaps most importantly, Stahl's work is resolutely practical in its approach and goals - and promises to be of especial significance and value precisely for IT practitioners and professions who seek to expand their theoretical understanding and practical judgment with regard to the ethical complexities they face on a daily basis. In particular, Stahl's discussion of privacy as a primary case study powerfully demonstrates the usefulness of his notion of reflexive responsibility. This discussion alone should be required reading not only for applied ethicists interested in the issue, but precisely for the IT professionals who confront issues of privacy most directly and powerfully in their work.
– Dr. Charles Ess, Visiting Professor (Fall, ’03), Department of Digital Aesthetics and Communication (DIAC), the IT University of Copenhagen, Denmark & Distinguished Research Professor, Interdisciplinary Studies, Drury University, USA