1. What is a profession?
A profession refers an occupation that is essentially founded upon a specific educational training that is specialized around a particular field. A profession seeks to output and provide counsel that is objective in a particular subject matter as well as to provide service to other people. There is usually compensation involved in a particular profession that is pursued by an individual (America, M. L. A. o., English, 2000 ).
2. What is professional attitude?
Professional attitude refers to the decision by a professional to conduct themselves with the demeanor and decorum that is expected within the work environment. These include such aspects as proper dressing, adhering to the professional code of conduct as well as work ethics. this is the mind set up that an employee has with regard to their work(Haberer, J. A. B., & Association, 1999).
3. What is the point of a code of ethics?
Code of ethics refers to a set of rules that are laid down that dictate the behavior of the individuals within the organization set up. The importance of the ethics code of conduct is that it sets the expectations of the organization on the employees and the management. Additionally, it sets in motion mechanisms that can be used to enforce rules and consequences that result from non compliance with the laid down code (Gilbey & Perezgonzalez, 2011).
4. Should ethics be a core part of the qualification of any I.T worker.
Ethics is fundamental aspect of the I.T field an essential that is necessary for any I.T professional. There are several core ethical aspects that an I.T worker should observe.
They should be honest, cooperative , not engage in fraudulent practices and must always obey the laid down ethics and code of conduct(Dean, 2004).
PART 3b
1. When should one be held accountable for some action?
Accountability plays a fundamental role to ensure that an organization’s resources are put to good use at all times. One should always be held accountable for all procedures that they are engaged in within the institution(Lussier,2011).
2. Who should be held accountable for software failures?
It has been noted that software developers can be rested upon the shoulders of software developers, who are responsible for their code and the end result. It has been argued though, that placing liability on open source developers is a challenge due to the fundamentals of open source development that places liability of the source code on the whole developmental community(Moody, 2009)
3. Is it justifiable to release faulty software?
Many factors go into the development of software. Faults in software may at times be discovered at stages when the software us at the release stage. As such , numerous resources may have been input into such a development that the withdrawal of the software may not be economical. Consequently the software may have to be released. But considering the ethical code of conduct of I.T professionals, such software are supposed to be withdrawn regardless of the consequences.
4. Summary of the aims of the ACS code of ethics
This can be summarized as an ethical code of conduct based on the pillars of honesty, Responsibility, value and high quality service that dictate the conduct of the I.T workers.
REFERENCES
America, M. L. A. o., English, A. o. D. o., & ., A. o. D. o. F. L. (2000). Profession: Modern Language Association of America.
Dean, H. (2004). The ethics of welfare: human rights, dependency, and responsibility: Policy Press.
Fisher, C. B. (2010). Decoding the Ethics Code: A Practical Guide for Psychologists, Updated Edition: SAGE Publications.
Gilbey, A., & Perezgonzalez, J. (2011). Chiropractor code of ethics: the importance of setting a good example. [Letter]. N Z Med J, 124(1340), 94-95.
Haberer, J. A. B., & Association, A. V. M. (1999). Tips on professional attitude and effective listening: American Veterinary Medical Association.
Lussier, R. N. (2011). Management Fundamentals: Concepts, Applications, Skill Development: Cengage Learning.
Moody, G. (2009). Should Software Developers Be liable for their Code. Retrieved on 29/3/2012. Retrieved from : http://www.linuxjournal.com/content/should-software-developers-be-liable-their-code
Weckert, J., & Adeney, D. (1997). Computer and information ethics: Greenwood Press.
