[IxDA Discuss] Ethical Issues for Interaction Designers

[kiddfelish at aim.com]

I find it unethical to trick users?with fake/marketing functionality. In doing this we undermine their ability to have a good user experience.?

?- Faux Functionality Advertising. The fake dropdown and Go button?embedded on a standard sized ad were created to trick users. If marketers can't convince with a message, is tricking them really going to work? I don't think so.

?- Changing dispatches on Menu Options to drive fake page views. I'm a fan of AIM but was completely appalled today when I used the handy "Read Mail" menu item (as I had done many times before). Suddenly I'm looking at AOL.COM. I?try again thinking perhaps I selected?the wrong item. Nope -- I was tricked twice into delivering a page view.

I'm sure there are more "brilliant" marketing tricks out there, but I just?call it Evil UI. I am probably not alone.

Stacy Felish


?

-----Original Message-----
From: Thomas J. Froehlich <tfroehli at kent.edu>
To: Interaction Design Association (IxDA) <discuss at ixda.org>
Sent: Tue, 31 Jul 2007 9:46 am
Subject: [IxDA Discuss] Ethical Issues for Interaction Designers



I am working on a paper on ethical issues for interaction designers 
and  information architects.  What kinds of ethical issues arise in 
IxD or IA  practice, ethical issues that are more or less distinctive 
for IxDs or IAs?  There is a lot of HCI literature on the proper use 
of human subjects, but are there distinctive problems for IxDs or 
IAs?  What would they be? Can you provide any specific examples? I 
suspect that ethical problems would occur between the architects or 
designers and the clients or the architects or designers and upper 
management.   If you were created a code of ethics, what would it 
distinctively include?   I would appreciate any thoughts, cases or examples.

Thomas J. Froehlich, Ph.D., Professor and Director
Master's Program in Information Architecture and Knowledge Management
316 Library
Kent State University
Kent OH 44242-0001

http://www.personal.kent.edu/~tfroehli/
tfroehli at kent.edu
http://iakm.kent.edu

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