Abstract

The use of digital goods can lead to manifold ethical issues such as biased data processing, a lack of explainability for decisions, or missing accountability. These ethical issues have led to new regulations and increased pressure on firms. To ensure that digital goods meet corporate ethical guidelines, many firms have employed digital ethics governance. Although some of these can be attributed to ethics bluewashing, firms have limited guidance on implementing digital ethical governance across organizational levels. Thus, firms face substantial difficulties when translating ethical guidelines into operational practice. Existing research still lacks a solid understanding of the forms of digital ethics governance and how they impact the development of digital goods. We draw from the meta-ethical theory “CARE” (Claims, Affronts, Responses, and Equilibrium) and operationalize it to connect digital ethics governance forms to their operational-level effects. We collected empirical evidence on organizational practices by conducting 22 interviews with strategic- and operational-level firm representatives. We identify three forms of digital ethics governance and determine their specific characteristics and effects on the development of digital goods. We further establish that the relational mechanism of ethical discourse is critical for operationalizing ethical principles independent of the chosen governance form. We develop the “Digital Ethics Governance Theory” (DEGT), which details an iterative organizational lifecycle on how firms can approach digital ethics governance and resolve dignity disequilibrium. Our work enhances research by theorizing organizational digital ethics practices; additionally, it offers practitioners a pathway to align digital ethics governance with their business objectives and ethical missions.

DOI

10.17705/1jais.00996

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