Digital Copyright on Unethical Attitude and Infringement Intention: Moderating Effect of Moral Judgment

The proliferation of generative artificial intelligence tools, such as Chat-GPT and Notion AI, has significantly boosted research productivity across multiple academic fields. However, the academic community warns that these Fourth Industrial Revolution-based advancements may accelerate infringements of personal creative works and copyrights. This study aimed to assess public awareness of digital copyright and to examine how this awareness influences unethical attitudes and intentions to infringe. The analysis was based on a survey conducted over seven days, from October 8 to October 15, 2024, utilizing SPSS 25.0 and Amos 18.0 for statistical evaluation. The findings are as follows. First, a higher level of digital copyright awareness is associated with a lower tendency toward unethical attitudes regarding copyright. Second, heightened recognition of digital copyright education also correlates with a reduction in unethical attitudes. Third, greater awareness of digital copyright coincides with lower intentions to infringe. In contrast, awareness of copyright education alone does not directly affect infringement intentions. These results indicate that efforts to raise public awareness of digital copyright should precede formal educational programs, and systematic, long-term educational systems are necessary to promote ethical attitudes. This approach is critical given the ongoing legal and ethical debates concerning copyright in the digital and AI era.