 | |
ITrust workshop
Glasgow 2-4 Sep 2002 | | |
 Sociology and philosophers
Trust, technology, society
Internet sociology still in its infancy. Sociology may not be a hot issue in the Internet, but
trust is. Esp after Sep-11 and corporate scandals. Trust is reflected in
technology.
5 issues: inequality (digital divide); community and social capital (virtual communities); political
participation; virtual organizations (economic and others); cultural
participation and diversity. How does sociological theory contribute? Trust is a human quality
observed only through human interaction - trust not the device,
butnthose who made it. Human quality, therefore assignment to machines is anthopomorphic, creates problem
of what we mean. Focus on behaviour of individual
users, but extrapolate to society as a whole.
3 policy issues: equality, privacy, intellectual property?
Trust is bilateral.
...
Zoran: phycological analysis of trust model as verification of subjective trust model.
?, Crete: how a philosopher can contribute? Trust is rich and complex notion with social,
psyc, cultural, social connotations. Multiple disciplines are needed.
Three issues: 1. what is trust? 2. What are requirements for trusting decision? (rationality,
etc...) 3. What is relation of trust to moral values? Philosophers can
provide tools for reasoning about such things; can give analysis of rationality - esp w.r.t. moral
considerations.
| 
