Course Description:
It doesn’t matter who you are, at some point in your UX career someone will come to you with an idea that feels wrong–in fact, you know it’s wrong. And as soon as that happens, you are part of an ethical problem. What can you do?
In this course, you will learn avenues of action, with tools that are available to all communication professionals. You will learn how to persuade companies to adopt ethical principles on which to self-regulate and how to use research to engage in ethical debates and effect beneficial change.
Using common scenarios in UX contexts and through discussion and practice you will:
Know how to spot “dark patterns” in UX design that achieve company goals at the expense of user goals
Improve the design of cybersecurity systems that monitor trusted workers
Understand how regulation works
Become conversant in the history and current events in regulating privacy
Explore movements of “socially responsible marketing” (SRM) and “transformative consumer research” (TCR)
By the end of the course you will plot out a communication leadership strategy for a publicly known ethical misstep, including a research plan, a 1-page PR crisis-response article, and a 5-page thought-leadership paper to differentiate your organization as the more ethical choice.
Meets Law & Ethics requirement.
University of Washington
Department of Communication