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An ethical framework in information systems decision making using normative theories of business ethics

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Abstract

As business environments become more complex and reliant on information systems, the decisions made by managers affect a growing number of stakeholders. This paper proposes a framework based on the application of normative theories in business ethics to facilitate the evaluation of IS related ethical dilemmas and arrive at fair and consistent decisions. The framework is applied in the context of an information privacy dilemma to demonstrate the decision making process. The ethical dilemma is analyzed using each one of the three normative theories—the stockholder theory, stakeholder theory, and social contract theory. The challenges associated with the application of these theories are also discussed.

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Acknowledgments

I thank Dr. Deepak Datta at the University of Texas at Arlington, USA for his assistance with editing the manuscript. I also extend my thanks to the reviewers, and specially reviewer #3 for the detailed comments that greatly helped in improving the clarity of the article.

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  1. Finance, Accounting, and Computer Information Systems Department, University of Houston Downtown, One Main Street, Houston, TX, 77002, USA

    Utpal Bose

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  1. Utpal Bose
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Correspondence to Utpal Bose.

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Bose, U. An ethical framework in information systems decision making using normative theories of business ethics. Ethics Inf Technol 14, 17–26 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10676-011-9283-5

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