Common misconceptions

Several misconceptions prevent teams from embracing ethical design:

• "Ethics slows development" assumes ethical considerations must be retrofitted rather than built in from the start. In reality, addressing ethics early prevents costly rework. Teams practicing ethical design report faster long-term velocity because they avoid technical debt from hasty decisions and trust-destroying incidents that derail roadmaps.
• "Users don't care about ethics" misreads user behavior. While users might accept unethical practices when alternatives don't exist, they switch quickly when ethical options emerge. The rapid adoption of privacy-focused browsers, email providers, and messaging apps shows latent demand for ethical alternatives. Users especially value ethics when products touch sensitive areas like health, finances, or children.
• "Ethical design means boring products" falsely pits ethics against innovation. Instagram's well-being features like usage dashboards enhance rather than diminish the experience. The most innovative products often emerge from ethical constraints that force creative problem-solving. Ethics provides guardrails, not roadblocks, channeling innovation toward sustainable value creation.