Ethics in Cyberspace

Transcription

1 Ethics in Cyberspace

2 Thomas Ploug Ethics in Cyberspace How Cyberspace May Influence Interpersonal Interaction 123

3 Professor Thomas Ploug Copenhagen Institute of Technology, AAUK. Lautrupvang 2B 2750 Ballerup Denmark Artwork used in the cover design courtesy of Alex Gomez and Kristian Nørgaard ISBN e-isbn DOI / Springer Dordrecht Heidelberg London New York Library of Congress Control Number: c Springer Science+Business Media B.V No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher, with the exception of any material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (

4 Acknowledgements In the process of writing this book and the doctoral dissertation on which it is based I have enjoyed various forms of assistance from a number of people. For all of this I am very grateful. Among friends and colleagues I would like to thank: Peter Øhrstrøm, for his encouragement, interesting conversation and valuable comment; Klaus Robering, for his valuable comments on extensive parts of the book; Kasper Lippert-Rasmussen, for very clear, competent and balanced criticism on the first parts of the book; and Søren Holm, for the hospitality shown during my stay as visiting research fellow at the University of Cardiff, and for his clear, balanced and insightful comment on the final product. I also owe thanks to Springer for seeing the potential in the subject of this book, and in particular to Natalie Rieborn and Neil Olivier. Thanks, too, to the two anonymous reviewers at Springer for their thorough comments and suggestions. Finally I owe my deepest gratitude to my family: to Mum and Dad, for your tireless interest in my work; to Berit, for your love and patience throughout: to Naomi and Celine, for the smiles and laughter that can turn any day to sunshine. v

5 Contents Acknowledgements v I The basic premise 1 1 Ethics in cyberspace Introduction The face of the other The Legal Tender experiment Explaining the basic premise Road map The basic premise revisited Shortcomings of the basic premise The kind of mediation The character of actions contrasted Coincidental difference in interaction Qualitative identity of situations Thebasicpremise Restating the basic premise Exploration of the basic premise II Action, explanation and cyberspace 31 3 Actions and explanations Actions and reasons The moral problem vii

6 viii Contents A Humean theory of motivation Internalism in relation to normative reasons Pure cognitivist internalism Explaining the basic premise The role of beliefs in explanation The role of ontological conditions in explanation Explanatory model Interaction in cyberspace Cyberspace: Infrastructure and interaction Conceptual computers and digital electronic machines Defining cyberspace: Virtuality and interaction Specific kinds of interaction in cyberspace Key properties of cyberspatial interaction Limited exchange of data and information Limited sensory access Extensive anonymity Logical relationship between key properties III Explaining the basic premise 85 5 Belief and particularity Structureofanalysis Thethreehypotheses Being convinced to a certain extent The reality of the patient Reliable and relevant evidence Belief and reality Hypothesis I: Reality and determinateness Determinateness and determinedness Belief, reality and determinateness Hypothesis II: Reality, causality and life-world Causality and life-world Belief, reality and causality Belief, reality and life-world

7 Contents ix 6.3 Hypothesis III: Reality and vulnerability Vulnerability and dependency Belief, reality and vulnerability Hypotheses I to III: Beliefs and evidence Linking beliefs and evidence Belief and evidence Evidence in cyberspatial interaction Lack of evidence Lack of relevant evidence Lack of reliable evidence Belief and action Belief, reality and ethics Belief, reality and motivation The particularity of moral concern Explaining the moral difference in interaction Foundation for explaining [TBP] Explaining [TBP] Revisiting sources of inspiration Concluding remarks Alternative explanations and interpretations Bibliography 213 Index 221