1,2,3,4 tell me how to grow more: A position paper on children, design ethics and biowearables

Abstract Driven by the rapid pace of technical innovation in biosensing, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things and wearable computing, the next generation of smart devices will be worn on-body, eventually becoming implanted. The increasing presence of these new forms of interactive technologies, known as biowearables, in children’s lives poses critical ethical concerns. In this position paper, we take a design ethics perspective to identify and describe four cases of ethical importance associated with biowearables, children, and long-term use. The cases concern potential negative impacts of specific aspects of biowearables on children’s identity formation, the development of autonomy and agency, and what sources of information children turn to for authority about themselves. Drawing on ethical discourse related to emerging technologies and biowearable computing, we present prospective guidance for designers, where it is available. Where guidance is nascent or missing, we propose future research areas that could be addressed. In particular, we propose the importance of teaching children about computer ethics through hands-on critical reflection during design and technology activities. Our results will be of interest to the human–computer interaction community as well as to technology developers, educators, parents and those involved in policy formation around emerging technologies.