Every decision we make is one made on behalf of your user. How do we know the decisions we make are the right ones? It is time we initiate a conversation: About where we are and where we want to go, about how we define and measure goodness and rightness in the digital realm, about responsibility, about decisions and consequences, about building something bigger than our own apps. It is time we talk about the ethics of web design. This talk introduces a method for ethical decision making in web design and tech. Rather than a wet moralistic blanket covering the fires of creativity, ethics can be the hearth that makes our creative fires burn brighter without burning down the house. Presented at WordCamp Europe 2018: https://2018.europe.wordcamp.org/session/the-ethics-of-web-design/

1. How to Not Destroy the World
The Ethics of Web Design
by Morten Rand-Hendriksen
Presented at WordCamp Europe 2018

2. Hey Morten,
you seem depressed.
Want me to cheer you up?

3. QWhat if your device could diagnose
the emergence of clinical depression?

4. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/06/20/fitbit-is-going-after-sleep-
apnea-to-expand-beyond-fitness-tracking.html

5. https://techcrunch.com/2017/11/27/facebook-ai-suicide-prevention/

6. https://www.theverge.com/2018/5/17/17344250/google-
x-selfish-ledger-video-data-privacy

7. – Nick Foster, Selfish Ledger video
“As cycles of collection and comparison extend,
it may be possible to develop a species-level
understanding of complex issues such as
depression, health, and poverty.”

8. – Nick Foster, Selfish Ledger video
“As cycles of collection and comparison extend,
it may be possible to develop a species-level
understanding of complex issues such as
depression, health, and poverty.”

9. This feels wrong,
but I can’t articulate
exactly why…

12. Yeah…
I thought we were
making world peace.
I just want to build cool
things on the internet.

14. I think that’s what they
call “ethics.”
How do I know if what
I’m doing is the right
thing to do?

15. How do we judge if what we do is
good or bad, right or wrong?

16. From the Greek ethos, meaning “character” or “custom”.
: rules of behavior based on ideas about
what is morally good and bad.
ethics

17. From the Latin mores, meaning “customs”.
: concerning or relating to what is right
and wrong in human behavior.
morals

18. Ethics are the science of morals,
morals are the practice of ethics.

19. : rules of behavior based on ideas about
what design is morally good and bad.
: tools to help make and explain moral
judgements about design decisions.
design ethics

20. QWhat if your device could diagnose
the emergence of clinical depression?
AI have some questions
we need to discuss…

21. How
What
Why
Efficient cause Who
Final cause
Formal cause
Material cause

22. Who do we become by doing this?
Why are we doing this?
How do we uphold our Duty of Care?
What are the consequences?
How
What
Why
Who

23. What are the
consequences?
1.

24. https://www.strava.com/heatmap#7.00/-120.90000/38.36000/hot/all

26. : the doctrine that the morality of an action is
to be judged solely by its consequences.
consequentialism

27. : the doctrine that actions are right if they are
useful or for the benefit of a majority.
utilitarianism

28. The rightness of an act is judged by how
well it promotes happiness.
The greatest happiness for the greatest
number should be the guiding principle
of conduct.

29. 80/20

30. Design for the majority.
Who defines this majority?
What about everyone else?

31. How consequentialism is supposed to work:
Good thing we planned
for those eventualities.

32. In hindsight, it’s obvious
we’d run into some issues.
How decisions end up being made:

34. GDPR
tl;dr: You had your chance to do this
right, but you messed up so now we’re
going to regulate your playground.

35. 1.• What are the consequences?
• Does this improve the common good
of those affected?
• How do we measure utility?
• Who decides which users matter
and why?

36. How do we uphold
our Duty of Care?
2.

37. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/sep/07/new-artificial-intelligence-can-tell-whether-youre-gay-or-straight-from-a-photograph

39. : the normative ethical position that judges the
morality of an action based on rules.
duty ethics

40. “Act only in accordance with that maxim
through which you can at the same time will
that it become a universal law.”
categorical imperative

41. : Act in the same way you’d want every other
person to act in the same situation.
categorical imperative

42. The rightness of an act is judged by
whether it is done out of duty to the
principle of following moral rules.

43. Do the right thing because
and you believe
it is your duty to
your action
sets a precedence

44. Duty of Care
tl;dr: You are responsible not only for
what you put into the world, but what
that does to the world and its people.

46. The Guardian

47. 2.• What norms are established?
• What duties of care do we have, and
how do we uphold them?
• Should every other person or company
in this position to do the same?

48. Who do we become
by doing this?
3.

49. “The United States government
has demanded that Apple take
an unprecedented step which
threatens the security of our
customers. We oppose this
order, which has implications
far beyond the legal case at
hand. This moment calls for
public discussion, and we want
our customers and people
around the country to
understand what is at stake.”
Tim Cook, Apple CEO, February 16, 2016

50. : the normative ethical position that
emphasizes an individual's character.
virtue ethics

51. An action is right if it is the same as the
action of someone who has virtue.
Yes, this is infuriatingly circular.

52. Model Behavior

53. Act as someone who holds the virtues
you yourself aspire to.
Fake it till you become it

54. • Courage
• Temperance
• Truthfulness
• Modesty
• Intelligence
• Logic
• Good sense
• Theoretical wisdom
• Practical wisdom
(Some of) Aristotle’s Virtues
• Honesty
• Self-Control
• Humility
• Justice
• Courage
• Empathy
• Care
• Civility
• Flexibility
• Perspective
• Magnanimity
• Technomoral Wisdom
Vallor’s Technomoral Virtues

56. • A designer is first and foremost a
human being.
• A designer is responsible for the
work they put into the world.
• A designer values impact over form.
• A designer owes the people who
hire them not just their labor, but
their counsel.
• A designer welcomes criticism.
• A designer strives to know their
audience.
• A designer does not believe in edge
cases.
• A designer is part of a professional
community.
• A designer welcomes a diverse and
competitive field.
• A designer takes time for self-
reflection.
A Designer’s Code of Ethics
by Mike Monteiro

58. GPL
tl;dr: I believe all people should be able to
use this software and create from it
whatever they want, so I’ll build that in
as a requirement.

59. “To me, and the rest of
the Confrere team, accessibility
is simply the right thing to do
— morally.”
Ida Aalen, Chief Product Officer at confrere.com

60. 3.• What person / company do we become
by doing this?
• What behaviors are we modeling
for others and for ourselves?
• What virtues do we believe and promote?

61. 4.Why are we
doing this?

65. “Why is not about making
money. That’s a result. Why is a
purpose, cause, or belief. It’s the
very reason your organization
exists.”
Simon Sinek

66. Asking “why” is a way of
clarifying your desire to
shape the world to your vision.
Me, in this talk

67. : theoretical framework that entails two core normative claims:
1. The freedom to achieve well-being is of primary moral
importance,
2. that freedom to achieve well-being is to be understood in
terms of people's capabilities, that is, their real opportunities to
do and be what they have reason to value.
capability approach

68. An action is right if it grants or enables
those acted upon capabilities in the form
of real opportunities to do and be what
they have reason to value.

69. Beyond User-centered Design
we should embrace
Capability-centered Design.

70. Every design decision we make
carves a path our users will follow
into our shared future.

71. Fake news
Radicalization
Click baitAdvertising
Echo chambersTracking
The Tracks We Built:

72. - Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
“The road to hell is paved
with good intentions.”
“Those who cannot
remember the past are
condemned to repeat it.”
- George Santayana

73. “Move fast and break things.”
Give everyone the capability
to do and be what they have
reason to value.

74. “As the creators of applications
and the data flows they create,
we can play a critical and
positive role in protecting our
users from attacks on their
privacy, their dignity, and even
their safety.”
Heather Burns for Smashing Magazine

75. 4.• What capabilities are we granting and
enabling for the end-user?
• Do these capabilities allow them the
freedom to achieve well-being?
• What future are we building?

76. WHY
WHO
HOW
WHAT
Evaluate an existing decision
Evaluate a new idea
Evaluate an existing decision

77. With every design decision we
build the future for our users and
ourselves.

78. With every design decision we
build the future for our users and
ourselves.

79. “The place to improve the world
is first in one's own heart and
head and hands,
and then work outward
from there.
- Robert M. Pirsig