Artificial intelligence (AI) systems are playing an overarching role in the disinformation phenomenon our world is currently facing. Such systems boost the problem not only by increasing opportunities to create realistic AI-generated fake content, but also, and essentially, by facilitating the dissemination of disinformation to a targeted audience and at scale by malicious stakeholders. This situation entails multiple ethical and human rights concerns, in particular regarding human dignity, autonomy, democracy, and peace. In reaction, other AI systems are developed to detect and moderate disinformation online. Such systems do not escape from ethical and human rights concerns either, especially regarding freedom of expression and information. Having originally started with ascending co-regulation, the European Union (EU) is now heading toward descending co-regulation of the phenomenon. In particular, the Digital Services Act proposal provides for transparency obligations and external audit for very large online platforms’ recommender systems and content moderation. While with this proposal, the Commission focusses on the regulation of content considered as problematic, the EU Parliament and the EU Council call for enhancing access to trustworthy content. In light of our study, we stress that the disinformation problem is mainly caused by the business model of the web that is based on advertising revenues, and that adapting this model would reduce the problem considerably. We also observe that while AI systems are inappropriate to moderate disinformation content online, and even to detect such content, they may be more appropriate to counter the manipulation of the digital ecosystem.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is currently developing fast and its potential as driver of innovative solutions is increasing, pushed by technologies, networks, communication, and computing power, and has the potential to drive the development of technological ecosystems, such as innovation clusters. Innovation clusters are agglomeration of enterprises and research organizations, which cooperate, interact and compete, generating innovation and driving the growth of ecosystems. The narrative around innovation clusters has been developing since many years and policy-makers seek to use such clusters as a policy instrument to support the growth of technology on the one hand and regional and sectoral development on the other hand. This policy paper expands an empirical study on IoT innovation clusters in Europe and places it within the current debate around clusters and innovation clusters to provide evidence-based advice to policy-makers on what may and may not work as public policy measures. The paper highlights the findings of the interaction with several hundred European IoT innovation clusters and points out their points of view on their own creation factors, operational characteristics, and success stories, as well as their expectations in respect to policy interventions for IoT and for clusters. Suggestions for IoT policy-making are provided. The paper has also undertaken an extensive review of up-to date research on innovation cluster creation and performance, thoroughly analyzing the real possibility to define causal relationships between clusters, productivity and economic growth, and business performance, and providing suggestions for policy-makers on the approach to cluster policy.

Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have become increasingly present in our lives, and their use has spread considerably. This paper presents a review of the way ICTs can help practitioners and researchers to study, promote, and train positive emotions. It is framed within the field of Positive Technologies: the applied scientific approach to the study of the use of technology to improve the quality of personal experience, with the goal of increasing wellbeing. First, the article presents an introduction to the topic of technologies and positive emotions. Then, it describes how ICTs can aid in monitoring, assessing, promoting, modifying, and training positive emotions. Finally, implications and future directions of the role of Positive Technologies in positive emotions are discussed. The authors conclude that, in the near future, Positive Technologies and the field of positive emotions will interact synergistically, producing an exponential growth in the understanding and promotion of positive emotions.

The increased use of information and communication technologies arguably represents important opportunities for the field of transitional justice, notably with respect to the optimization of existing mechanisms and the development of new ones. This article focuses on state-based and typically very formal mechanisms, namely international, internationalized and national criminal tribunals as well as truth and reconciliation commissions. These institutions often apply and engage with international law and operate with the involvement or under the close scrutiny of the international community. Moreover, they can be expected to be the first ones to embrace insights from the field of cyberjustice to a significant extent.

Enhancing access to and participation in such mechanisms, rendering them more cost-efficient and facilitating information-sharing would correspond to generally accepted norms relating to both international human rights and justice. However, cyberjustice initiatives may also entrench an already common ‘toolkit approach’ in the field of transitional justice. This article builds on recent critiques of the dominant legalistic and normatively driven transitional justice paradigm and argues that transitional justice + cyberjustice hence risks furthering a technocratic top-down approach that unduly limits creative solutions. By adopting a critical legal-pluralistic approach that conceives individuals as law-creative actors and that is cognizant of the close relationship between means and ends, the article imagines ways of benefiting from the promises of transitional justice + cyberjustice.

Objectives: The current digital revolution is particularly relevant for interactions of healthcare providers with patients and the community as a whole. The growing public acceptance and distribution of new communication tools such as smart mobile phones provide the prerequisite for information and communication technology (ICT) -assisted healthcare applications. The present study aimed at identifying specifications and perceptions of different interest groups regarding future demands of ICT-supported doctor–patient communication in Austria.

Methods: German-speaking Austrian healthcare experts (n = 73; 74 percent males; mean age, 43.9 years; SD 9.4) representing medical professionals, patient advocates, and administrative personnel participated in a 2-round online Delphi process. Participants evaluated scenario-based benefits and obstacles for possible prospect introduction as well as degree of innovation, desirability, and estimated implementation dates of two medical care-related future set ups.

Results: Panelists expected the future ICT-supported doctor–patient dialogue to especially improve the three factors doctors–patient relationship, patients’ knowledge, and quality of social health care. However, lack of acceptance by doctors, data security, and monetary aspects were considered as the three most relevant barriers for ICT implementation. Furthermore, inter-group comparison regarding desirability of future scenarios showed that medical professionals tended to be more skeptical about health-related technological innovations (p < .001).

Conclusions: The findings of this survey revealed different expectations among interest groups. Thus, we suggest building taskforces and using workshops for establishing a dialogue between stakeholders to positively shape the future of ICT-supported collaboration and communication between doctors and patients.

A key component of social work ethics is social justice and equitable access to resources. Increasingly, this includes access to technology. This study addresses issues related to the ‘digital divide’ by testing a peer tutor model (Technology and Aging Project, TAP2) to teach adults aged 60 and older how to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) such as email, the internet, online chat rooms and discussion groups, internet-based support groups, and voice technology and webcams. Participants from the control group of a previous programme, TAP1 (N=19) participated in a six-month computer training programme. Six participants who had successfully completed the TAP1 training were selected to be peer tutors. Data were collected from tutors and learners at baseline, three months, six months and nine months (three months after the end of training). The current study reports on learner outcomes only. Measures include computer, social support, and mental health-related outcomes. Learners reported a significant and consistent increase over time in their confidence completing certain computer-related tasks and their overall use of ICTs. Mental health and social support outcomes did not change. Overall, the peer tutor model appeared to be at least as effective as the previous staff-directed model.

In this paper we compare the impact of hardware, software, and communication equipment, widely referred to as information and communication technologies (ICT), on economic growth among the advanced industrialized countries. We use nonparametric techniques that allow us to estimate the output elasticities of ICT and human capital directly for each country and time period in our sample. Our results indicate that countries with high levels of ICT capital have high output elasticities of human capital. In addition, countries with high levels of human capital have high output elasticities of ICT, a result suggesting complementarity between the two.

Presently used dietary-assessment methods often present difficulties for researchers and respondents, and misreporting errors are common. Methods using information and communication technologies (ICT) may improve quality and accuracy. The present paper presents a systematic literature review describing studies applying ICT to dietary assessment. Eligible papers published between January 1995 and February 2008 were classified into four assessment categories: computerised assessment; personal digital assistants (PDA); digital photography; smart cards. Computerised assessments comprise frequency questionnaires, 24 h recalls (24HR) and diet history assessments. Self-administered computerised assessments, which can include audio support, may reduce literacy problems, be translated and are useful for younger age groups, but less so for those unfamiliar with computers. Self-administered 24HR utilising computers yielded comparable results as standard methods, but needed supervision if used in children. Computer-assisted interviewer-administered recall results were similar to conventional recalls, and reduced inter-interviewer variability. PDA showed some advantages but did not reduce underreporting. Mobile phone meal photos did not improve PDA accuracy. Digital photography for assessing individual food intake in dining facilities was accurate for adults and children, although validity was slightly higher with direct visual observation. Smart cards in dining facilities were useful for measuring food choice but not total dietary intake. In conclusion, computerised assessments and PDA are promising, and could improve dietary assessment quality in some vulnerable groups and decrease researcher workload. Both still need comprehensive evaluation for micronutrient intake assessment. Further work is necessary for improving ICT tools in established and new methods and for their rigorous evaluation.