Publications

ARTICLES/PROCEEDINGS:

Accepted/Published Articles:

Rogerson, S., Miller, K., Winter, J., and Larson, D. K., (2018), Information Systems Ethics – challenges and opportunities. Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics in Society, Vol 16 Issue 1

Larson, D.K. & Miller, K. (2017). Action Ethics for a Software Development Class. ACM Inroads, March 2017, Vol. 9 No. 1.

Larson, D.K. & Miller, K. (2017). Action Ethics – Testing and Data Analysis. ACM Inroads, Accepted, publication in 2017

Agarwal, A. & Larson, D. K. (2014). Mitigating Behavioral Outcomes in a Multi-Project Environment: A Modified CCPM Model. Academy of Information and Management Sciences Journal, 17 (2), 15-27.

Miller, K. & Larson, D. K. (2013). Measuring A Distance: Humans, Cyborgs, Robots. American Philosophical Association Newsletter on Philosophy and Computers, 13 (1), 20-24.

Larson, D. K. & Miller, K. (2013). Medical Records and Software Trust. IT Professional.

Larson, David K.& Miller, Keith, Ethics in the IT Curriculum: Why and How?, published in the Journal of Information Ethics, Fall 2009.

In this article Dr. Miller and I argue that the topic of ethics should be a more integral part of Computer Science (CS) and Management Information Systems (MIS) curriculums. In today’s environment, students of MIS or CS must have a through understanding of the importance of acknowledging and dealing with ethical issues. Ethical issues are as critical to success of information technology projects as are design and technical issues. Consequently, information technology professionals (which our students hope to become) must know how to view what they are doing or being asked to do from an ethical perspective. The importance of ethics in organizations and management has escalated in the last few years and is now seen as critical.

Larson, David K.& Miller, Keith, When Sensitive Information Crosses Borders, published in IT Professional, July/August 2009.

Based on several recent news articles concerning laptop computer seizures at U.S. borders, Dr. Miller and I decided to address this issue from an ethical perspective. The seizure of information-bearing devices at the U.S. border generates ethical challenges for organizations, their employees, government agencies, and government agency employees. We argue that organizations and government agencies can reduce the problems associated with these seizures through specific policies and procedures. We suggest that agencies enforcing policies should be open about their policies and their effectiveness. Additionally, we suggest that organizations should take care to protect their sensitive information and to not place their employees into difficult no-win situations when traveling outside the country.

Larson, David K. and Sung, Chung-Hsien, Comparing Student Performance: Online Versus Blended Versus Face-to-Face, published in the Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks (JALN), Vol. 13, Issue 1, April 2009.

The purpose of this research was to perform a three way comparison of delivery modes for an introductory Management Information Systems course to determine if there existed a difference in student success between the delivery modes. The research compares student exam and final grade results in this class that was taught by the same instructor using face-to-face, blended and online delivery modes. An Analysis of Variance test was used on the exam and final grade data to determine if a significant difference existed. Additionally, a discussion of this class in relation to Sloan-C’s Effective Practices (Five Pillars) is presented. This research demonstrates that there is no significant difference between delivery modes. Additionally, when measured against Sloan-C’s Effective Practices, blended and online modes for this class do very well.

Larson, David K. and Miller, Keith, Silver bullets for little monsters: Incremental progress in making software more trustworthy, published in IT Professional, March/April 2005.

Within this article Dr. Miller and I recognize that there will most likely not ever be a single “silver bullet” solution that will allow the information technology community to solve the entirety of software development nightmares that create untrustworthy software. What we argue is perhaps if we pick our monsters very carefully, we can kill a few small monsters with existing silver bullets. This will not solve all the problems of software development; but it should largely solve a few of those problems, and that incremental progress will be a good thing. An open question is why, since these silver bullets exist, are these little monsters still giving us fits?

Miller, Keith and Larson, David K., Angels and Artifacts: Moral Agents in the Age of Computers and Networks, published in Journal of Information, Communication & Ethics in Society, July 2005.

With the advent of contemporary software that learns as it operates and encounters situations, the idea is that this learning may indicate some form of moral agency. In this paper, Dr. Miller and I discuss moral agency and how it might apply to this learning software. We propose that software engineers must ensure, as much as possible, that the software will act appropriately with respect to a computing professional’s ethical responsibilities to the public interest. As software that learns becomes increasingly widespread, and as software begins to function more and more independently on the basis of this learning, software engineers will have to shoulder the increasingly heavy ethical burden of trying to predict and control the effects of this learning and independence. It will no longer be sufficient to try to predict the consequences (both intended and unintended) of the program delivered. We will instead now have to consider the consequences of what the program will become after it is delivered and starts to interact, adapt, and behave autonomously.

Miller, Keith and Larson, David K., Agile Software Development: Human Values and Culture, published in IEEE Technology and Society, December, 2005

Within this paper Dr. Miller and I examine how software engineers can better think about and describe issues at the intersection of computer ethics and software engineering. Agile software development techniques are used as an example of a topic that requires precise language about human values as well as technical details. The Manifesto for Agile Development has been influential in the popularization of agile development techniques. Taking a cue from the Manifesto, this paper explores some of the assumptions about agile methods, and some of the likely consequences of adopting them. We suggest ways to encourage software engineers to think critically and precisely about the ethical advantages and disadvantages of proposed innovations in software development methods.

"Online Training Helps Illinois Harness the Crime-Fighting Power of Criminal Justice Databases," Law Enforcement Technology, August 2000.

Conference Proceedings:

Panel: The Ethics of Information Systems – Challenges and Opportunities. Simon Rogerson, Keith Miller, Jenifer Sunrise Winter, and David Larson, Midwest AIS 2017 Conference, Springfield, Illinois, 2017

Agarwal, A. & Larson, D. K. (2013). A Modified Prescriptive Model to Mitigate Behavioral Issues in Project Management. Allied Academies Conference, Allied Academies. San Antonio, Texas

Larson, David K., “Ethics and the Information Systems Development Professional: Bridging the Gap,” Proceedings of the Second Midwest United States Association for Information Systems, Springfield IL May 18-19, 2007

Michele Gribbins, Rassule Hadidi, James Hall, Dave Larson, Xiaoqing Li, Te-Wei Wang, Yifeng Zhang, “Panel: What Have We e-Learned Over The Past Decade? A Discussion Of Faculty's Experiences With The Development And Delivery Of An Online M.S. In MIS Degree Program,” Proceedings of the Second Midwest United States Association for Information Systems, Springfield IL May 18-19, 2007.

Miller, Keith and Larson, David K., “Angels and Artifacts: Moral Agents in the Age of Computers and Networks,” Proceedings of the Eighth Annual Ethics& Technology Conference, (June 24 & 25, 2005), St. Louis, Missouri. Paper was designated as one of the five best papers submitted to the conference. (Portfolio – Scholarship – Example 5)

Dave Larson, “User Training An Essential Component to Application Implementation Success,” Midwest Decision Sciences Institute 2003 Proceedings, (March 27 - 29, 2003), Oxford, Ohio, pp. 51-53.

Dave Larson, “Online Training Helps Harness the Crime-Fighting Power of Criminal Justice Databases,” Midwest Decision Sciences Institute 2002 Proceedings, (April 25-27, 2002), Milwaukee, Wisconsin, pp. 157-159.

SEMINARS/CONVENTION PRESENTATIONS:

Illinois Health Care Association - Microsoft FrontPage 2000 - March 13 & 14, 2000

Illinois Health Care Association - 50th Annual Convention and Trade Show - September 11-13, 2000

    • Computer Skills: Databases
    • Computer Skills: Word Processing
    • Computer Skills: Spreadsheets
    • Computer Skills: Basic Graphic Design
    • Computer Skills: Hardware and File Maintenance

"Online Training Helps Illinois Harness the Crime-Fighting Power of Criminal Justice Databases," American Society for Law Enforcement Training - International Training Seminar & Law Enforcement Expo - Orlando, Florida, February 12 - 16, 2001