Nach positiver Absolvierung der Lehrveranstaltung sind Studierende in der Lage...

After successful completion of the course, students are able to: 

... understand and appreciate the concept of technology as part of social world

... critically reflect on existing technologies, technological visions, agendas and values underpinning these

… critically reflect on existing tools for ethical design and risk assessment of emerging technologies 

… be able to apply these tools

With rapid proliferation of AI systems in different domains and many pressing questions about the impact of such systems on society, the need to practice responsible research and innovation has never been more important. But what does it mean to practice responsible research and innovation? Which elements and practices does it incorporate? 

The course will begin with getting acquainted with fundamental theories and concepts of Science and Technology Studies (STS). Relying on these concepts, we will discuss case studies highlighting how technologies impact and reconfigure society. We will proceed to discuss different stakeholders involved in socio-technical evolution (including the role of regulators), and the different values, cultures and ideologies that drive design of emergent technologies. The course proceeds to discuss different methods available for responsible design of technologies e.g. value sensitive design, participatory design. Following this, the students will be invited to get acquainted with selected tools e.g. Ethical Matrix for audits of a system and understand its limitations/strengths. The course will then touch upon the topics of accountability and possible forms of intervention when things go wrong. 

This is an interdisciplinary course covering urgent and dynamic topics. Many of these topics don’t have closed-ended “right” answers. This is why the primary aim of the course is to enable students to develop critical thinking on complex matters and equip them with the ability to orient themselves in terms of available tools for responsible design and ethical risk assessment of emergent technologies. To meet this aim, the course is designed to be highly engaging and interactive. It includes talks given by invited speakers, lectures by the instructor, and many students' led activities and practical exercises. It is envisioned by the end of the course students will have experience based, rather than only theoretical understanding of the issues involved. To emphasize the active role of students in co-shaping the content of the course, the last unit is reserved for a students-chosen topic.

In registration, students of the master program »Media and human centered computing« will be given preference over students from other programs; students who alread successfully completed the PR »responsible research and innovation« will also be given preference in registration.

 It is expected the students registered for the course will attend the course in person, unless agreed otherwise with the instructor.

The student evaluation for this course is designed to align with the process of self-learning of interdisciplinary contents, facilitation, presentation, and reporting expected of responsible practitioners today. Students will have the opportunity to take the role of participant/audience/auditor throughout the course; they will be encouraged to give feedback to their peers.

As a 3 ECTS course, students are expected to allocated a total of 75 hours over the semester towards the course work outside lecture hours. This is an estimation - the exact number of hours will depend on the students' ability to read, explore independently etc.

• 30h In-class activities/presentations

• 15h Weekly reading, reflections and peer feedback

• 23h Activities included in homework

• 7h Upkeeping of “Responsible researcher” reflection diary

This course is offered for students of the master program »media and human-centered computing«. These students will be admitted first.

If there are spaces left, students from other master programs will be admitted on a first-come basis. 

 Students in bachelor programs will not be admitted.