Abstract
This article discusses the role of informed consent, a well-known concept and standard established in the field of medicine, in ethics codes relating to digital data management. It analyzes the significance allotted to informed consent and informed consent-related principles in ethics codes, policies, and guidelines by presenting the results of a study focused on 31 ethics codes, policies, and guidelines held as part of the Ethics Codes Collection. The analysis reveals that up to now, there is a limited number of codes of ethics, policies, and guidelines on digital data management. Informed consent often is a central component in these codes and guidelines. While there undoubtedly are significant similarities between informed consent in medicine and digital data management, in ethics codes and guidelines, informed consent-related standards in some fields such as marketing are weaker and less strict. The article concludes that informed consent is an essential standard in digital data management that can help effectively shape future practices in the field. However, a more detailed reflection on the specific content and role of informed consent and informed consent-related standards in the various areas of digital data management is needed to avoid the weakening and dilution of standards in contexts where there are no clear legal regulations.
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Notes
- 1.
See the Ethics Codes Collection of Illinois Institute of Technology’s Center for the Study of Ethics in the Professions (http://ethicscodescollection.org), a digital repository of around 3000 professional codes that seeks to trace the development and use of ethics codes across many professions.
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- 3.
- 4.
See Supplementary Table 1 for a list and definitions for the 19 codes being used here.
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This research was funded through a generous grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
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Hildt, E., Laas, K. (2022). Informed Consent in Digital Data Management. In: Laas, K., Davis, M., Hildt, E. (eds) Codes of Ethics and Ethical Guidelines. The International Library of Ethics, Law and Technology, vol 23. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-86201-5_4
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