Modeling the relative importance of ethical behavior criteria: A simulation of information systems professionals' ethical decisions

Using a simulation-based decision modeling technique, this study investigated two components of ethical decision making: the relative importance of six ethical criteria; and the information systems (IS) professional's ability to determine the importance the six ethical criteria in their decision-making process. This was accomplished via a questionnaire mailed to 480 randomly selected DPMA members, One hundred eighteen respondents identified two criteria as most important in their ethical evaluation of IS professionals: ''performance of assigned tasks to the best of his or her ability'' and ''works diligently to satisfy the organization's customers''. The results also raised questions about the IS professionals' (especially younger, less experienced individuals) ability to clearly articulate which criteria they actually used in their evaluation process.