A conceptual model of practitioners' attitude toward unethical IT use

Given the growing concerns about unethical usage of Information Technology (IT) becoming a major security concern, this research-in-progress paper conceptually models IS practitioner (professional) attitude toward unethical IT use. Based on the ethical notions of universalism and particularism, it argues for a two-dimensional analysis to judge development of attitude toward using IT unethically: understand the IS professional as a human being subscribing to universal principles and understand the IS professional as rooted to an organizational community of practice. Through its articulation of two powerful lenses of universalism and particularism, this paper contributes by understanding how philosophical perspectives of ethics can inform our understanding of IS security. Finally, the paper discusses future research and practice implications arising out of this conceptual treatment.