The Social Responsibility of Young Professionals Working with Information Systems and Technologies

Research purpose—Economy digital transformation has had a strong impact on several areas, such as employment, economic organization modus operandi, or the digital modernization of economic agents. Technological innovations, such as artificial intelligence, have resulted in new digital products and services that are smarter, autonomous, and complex. This evolution requires ethics and social responsibility as critical components of economic sustainability. Design/methodology/approach—This article analyzes the relevance of ethics and social responsibility among young information systems professionals. Given the technological specificity of the new generation, it was considered an opportunity to analyze sensitivity to their ethical obligations and responsibilities. A survey was sent to about 40 information systems and technology young professionals, as a convenience sample, to assess several dimensions of ethics and social responsibility, and to identify an opportunity for future studies. Findings—The results show that there is responsibility regarding the social effects of technology on technology users. However, it is noted that there is still a long way to go, because decisions regarding ethical and social responsibilities cannot be left to the discretion of each individual professional. Economic organizations should assume values, policies, and rules appropriated to the new order in the context of the information society. Originality/value/practical implications—The present study aimed to evaluate the relevance of ethics and social responsibility to information systems young professionals, and we expect that these results can encourage them to develop greater sensitivity to this issue, contributing to the change needed and desired.