Ethics of designing for behavior change

Reflect on the ethics of designing for behavior change. When is it okay and not okay to “trick” people into doing things that are good for them? Does everything we create, in one sense or another, change an end‐user’s behavior? Use concrete examples to illustrate your points.

Regardless of our intentions all design will create behavior change in a way or another. Now if tricking someone to changing his or her behavior is ethical is the question.  I think the morality of such a change depends on the intentions behind the design. For example in advertising, even if the client is going to benefit from that product or service, it is for the sake of personal interest. When burger king designs an ad showing a grilled patty, they want nothing more but to gain more profit. Burger King may be a healthier choice than McDonalds, but their intention is not people’s health, all they care about it pure profit.

I believe tricking people to change their behavior is justified only if it is done to improve their lives. This improvement could be medical, in education or even simply helping someone achieve their goals. For example Protius, is designed to change behavior for the client sake and improve their lives. My father is diabetic, he is very well motivated and has the ability to take care of his health but a signal would be very helpful.  A little reminder to encourage him to stick to a schedule will significantly help his health.

I believe that if the intention behind a design is to improve ones life, then it is justified to trick people into helping them. But if your main reason for the design is for the producer to benefit from the behavioral change, then it is not ethical.