In search of the common good : the ethics of disclosing personal information held in public archives
department or school: Arts, Faculty of
department or school: Library, Archival and Information Studies (SLAIS), School of
data provider: DSpace
degree campus: UBCV
creator: MacNeil, Heather Marie
issued: 2010-06-29T19:38:01Z
issued: 1987
related degree: Master of Archival Studies - MAS
degree grantor: University of British Columbia
description: The right to privacy is the right of individuals to determine, within reasonable limits, the extent to which they are known to others. Over the last twenty years the enormous increase in the amount of personal information on citizens maintained in government record-keeping systems has led to increasing public concern for information privacy. Computer technology has contributed to the collection, preservation and use of massive bodies of highly detailed personal information documenting individual characteristics as well as a broad range of social transactions. Automated record-keeping systems permit the linking of personal information from a wide variety of government data banks, a capability which, civil libertarians fear, is vulnerable to abuse. The social contract underlying relations between citizens and the state requires that individuals surrender some measure of privacy in return for physical and social protection. But how far does that contract extend? Does the social contract which, implicitly, governs the collection of personal information in the interests of administering various social benefits, also entitle archivists, as the official keepers of government records, to permit subsequent uses of that information once its administrative usefulness has been exhausted? Social researchers, including social historians, take an affirmative position, arguing that the closure of records containing personal information is a violation of the principle of freedom of enquiry or the scholar's right to pursue and to communicate knowledge in the interest of a greater societal good. The question is, does freedom of enquiry possess the same moral value as the right to privacy? In situations where the two values conflict, where does the archivist's moral duty lie? The thesis will address these questions by examining the ethical justifications for and against research uses of personal information and the social role the archivist plays in mediating the competing moral claims…
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/26051
note: IN SEARCH OF THE COMMON GOOD: THE ETHICS OF DISCLOSING PERSONAL INFORMATION HELD IN PUBLIC ARCHIVES By HEATHER MARIE MACNEIL M.A., Simon^Fraser U n i v e r s i t y , 1985 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARCHIVAL STUDIES i n THE FACULTY OF ARTS Administered by School of L i b r a r y , A r c h i v a l and Information Studies and Department of H i s t o r y We accept t h i s t h e s i s as conforming to the r e q u i r e d standard: THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA AUGUST 1987 © Heather Marie MacNeil In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of SCHOOL OF LIBRARY, ARCHIVAL AND INFORMATION STUDIES The University of British Columbia 1956 Main Mall Vancouver, Canada V6T 1Y3 DE-6(3/81) ABSTRACT The r i g h t to p r i v a c y i s the r i g h t of i n d i v i d u a l s t o determine, within reasonable l i m i t s , the extent to which they are known to o t h e r s . Over the l a s t twenty years the enormous i n c r e a s e in the amount of pe r s o n a l information on c i t i z e n s maintained i n goyernment record-keeping systems has l e d to i n c r e a s i n g p u b l i c concern f o r i n f o r m a t i o n privacy. Computer technology has"contributed to the c o l l e c t i o n , p r e s e r v a t i o n and use of massive bodies of h i g h l y " d e t a i l e d personal information documenting i n d i v i d u a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s as well as a broad range of s o c i a l transactions. Automated record-keeping systems permit the…
has type: Thesis/Dissertation
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0096791
language: eng
degree discipline: Archival Studies
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
publisher: University of British Columbia
rights: For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
scholar level: Graduate
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/26051