Not Your PAPAS' Problem-Users and Ethical Use Cases in the Big Data Analytics Age: A Rejoinder to Richardson, Petter, and Carter

Abstract

Richardson, Petter, and Carter (2021) courageously challenge the IS discipline to address the ethical concerns that surround using big data analytics. We need to take up their challenge. However, embracing and educating ethical principles alone will not suffice to prevent abuses because the problems involve multiple actors and because value conflicts will inevitably occur. To accomplish the ambitious goals that Richardson et al. (2021) discuss, IS scholars need to develop an extensive body of knowledge about the myriad and diverse circumstances—use cases, if you will—in which ethical concerns arise in developing, deploying, and using big data analytics.