Abstract:

Considering the developments in information and communication technologies and the possibilities of easy access to and storing data, and more importantly, what can be accomplished with "big data", it can be said that traditional ethical codes will be insufficient to meet the ethical need in digital life. Today, almost all of life and social institutions have shifted to digital environment and the environments encountered in "online life" have made the understanding of digital ethics compulsory. Unlike the ethical understanding in the material world, digital ethics aims to bring a moral framework to the behaviors and lifestyles in the digital world where the daily life of the human being is carried. People engage in various digital actions on digital platforms, just like in the material world. Thanks to digital ethics, it can be ensured that people show mutual respect and understanding to each other in face to-face communication, as well as in the digital world. For this, the limits of "digital ethics" must be determined in the virtual world. In this study, it is aimed to examine the opinions of university faculty members on digital ethics, the importance of which is better understood with the transfer of educational services in higher education to the digital environment during pandemic days. Case study design was used in the research designed as a qualitative research. The research data were collected through face-to-face in-depth interviews with the opinions of faculty members working in different universities on digital ethics. Collected data were subjected to qualitative content analysis. As a result of the research, it was concluded that more studies should be done to raise awareness about digital ethics in universities and various suggestions were made.

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