Abstract
The progress of information networks has changed our lives. Information networks are now important constituents of human life, and the possession of high information ethics by each individual is a preliminary condition for the enrichment of our existence. This paper focuses on information ethics concerning the Internet. It describes how individuals, who are senders of information as well as receivers, perceive information ethics, and discusses the factors affecting those perceptions and actions. Paper questionnaire surveys, conducted of university students in Osaka Prefecture (valid answers : 493), inquired about their perceptions of Internet information ethics and their actual behaviors online, and about their morals in their daily life, frequency of use of the Internet and also empathy and sensation-seeking. The principal results were : 1) people who behaved morally in their daily life also behaved ethically on the Internet, 2) high empathy was related to good information ethics, 3) sensati (n-seeking people showed a tendency to do immoral acts on the Internet, and 4) high frequency of Internet use was related to performing immoral acts on the Internet.
