ETHICS IN ENGINEERING
INTRODUCTION
WHAT IS MEANT BY ETHICS?
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System of moral principles
Principles of right and wrong
Principles
of conduct governing
behavior of an individual or a
group
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CLICKER QUESTION
A person’s behavior is always ethical when one:
A. Does what is best for oneself
B. Has good intentions, no matter how
things turn out
C. Does what is best for everyone
D. Does what is legal
ETHICS IN AN ENGINEERING COURSE????
We have been studying engineering,
such as design, analysis, and
performance measurement.
Where does ethics fit in?
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HOW ETHICS FITS INTO ENGINEERING
Engineers ...
Build products such as cell phones, home
appliances, heart valves, bridges, & cars. In
general they advance society by building new
technology.
Develop processes, such as the process to
convert salt water into fresh water or the
process to recycle bottles. These processes
change how we live and what we can
accomplish.
PRODUCTS AND PROCESSES HAVE
CONSEQUENCES FOR SOCIETY:
If the bridge has an inadequate support, it will
fail.
If the gas tank is positioned too close to the
bumper, it might explode from a small accident.
If a medical instrument isn’t accurate, improper
doses of medication can be given.
If the process for refining gas produces too
much toxins, it harms the local community.
Decisions made by
engineers usually have
serious consequences to
people -- often to multitudes
of people.
Ethics and ethical reasoning
guide decision-making.
REASONING
The kind of reasoning that goes on
in such discussions involves certain
goals
such as, in this case, health, safety
and biodiversity.
The reasoning then focuses on
finding the best – or at least the
reasonably better --
means
for obtaining those goals.
This type of reasoning is often called
practical reasoning.
15
It uses different methods from mathematics
and the sciences.
Ethical reasoning is a type of practical
reasoning that concerns certain societal or
life-form goals, such as justice, equality,
freedom, health and safety.
THE ESSENCE OF YOUR ENGINEERING
CAREER
Engineering is one of the most important
professions in society.
As engineers we don’t just build things and
develop processes.
We build things and make processes in order to
better society.
In order to make society better we have to reflect
constantly on the products and processes that we
make.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
One main connection between ethics and
engineering comes from the impact that
engineered products and processes have on
society.
Engineers have to think about designing,
building, and marketing products that benefit
society.
Social Responsibility requires taking into
consideration the needs of society.
TYPICAL ETHICAL ISSUES THAT
ENGINEERS ENCOUNTER
Safety
Acceptable risk
Compliance
Confidentiality
Environmental health
Data integrity
Conflict of interest
Honesty/Dishonesty
Societal impact
Fairness
Accounting for uncertainty, etc.
PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY
Ethics has a second connection with engineering.
It comes from the way in which being socially
responsible puts duties and obligations on us
individually.
Ethics fits into engineering is through
professional responsibility.
TWO DIMENSIONS OF ETHICS IN
ENGINEERING
Ethics is part of engineering for two main
reasons.
a) Engineers need to be socially responsible
when building products and processes for
society.
b) Social responsibility requires professional
responsibility.
ABET SAYS . . .
By the time of graduation
students will have an
understanding of professional
and ethical responsibility
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WHAT WE WILL DISCUSS
The code of ethics for engineers.
Practicing ethics as an engineering student.
How to identify and analyze ethical dilemmas
through case analysis.
Specific examples of ethical situations you may
encounter.
ROLE-RESPONSIBILITIES
We need to make a distinction between two ways
in which ethics can apply to one’s life.
The two ways ethical issues can apply to one’s life
are based on role responsibilities. Role
responsibilities are responsibilities that attach to
us in virtue of a role that we have. Each of us has
different roles that we play in our life.
Engineering Student
Friend
Citizen
Employee
Role Responsibilities
Friend Look out for the interests of
your friend.
Athlete Play your sport in a
professional manner.
Employee Perform the duties of your
job.
Parent Look after your children and
their interests
Citizen Follow the laws of the
country in which you live.
ETHICS IN ENGINEERING
There are many fields of engineering, such as
Civil
Mechanical
Electrical
Software
Industrial
However, there are many ethical issues that arise
across all of these fields of engineering.
The code of ethics for engineers pertains to
engineers of all kinds.
CLICKER QUESTION
Engineers should follow their professional code of
ethics because:
A. The public will trust engineers more if they
know engineers have a code of ethics.
B. It helps them avoid legal problems, such as
getting sued.
C. It provides a clear definition of what the
public has a right to expect from
responsible engineers.
D. It raises the image of the profession and
hence gets engineers more pay.
THE ENGINEERING CODE OF ETHICS
The Engineering Code of Ethics has three
components:
The Fundamental Canons: which articulate
the basic components of ethical engineering.
The Rules of Practice: which clarify and
specify in detail the fundamental canons of ethics
in engineering.
Professional Obligations: which elaborate the
obligations that engineers have.
NSPE FUNDAMENTAL CANONS OF ETHICS
Engineers in the fulfillment of their professional
duties shall:
Hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the
public.
Perform services only in areas of their competence.
Issue public statements only in an objective and truthful
manner.
Act for each employer or client as faithful agents or
trustees.
Avoid deceptive acts.
Conduct themselves honorably, responsibly, ethically, and
lawfully, so as to enhance the honor, reputation, and
usefulness of the profession.
TRY IT YOURSELF
You are supervising a product with specifications
that only U.S.-made parts may be used.
Late in the project you discover a sub-contractor
has supplied a part with foreign-made bolts.
They aren’t very noticeable and would function
identically to U.S.-made bolts.
Your customer urgently needs the finished
product.
What should you do?
CLICKER QUESTION
Should you:
A. Say nothing and deliver the product with the
foreign bolts because the customer won’t notice.
B. Find some roughly equivalent violation of the
contract/specs for which the customer is
responsible and tell them you will ignore their
violation if they ignore yours.
C. Tell the customer about the problem, and let
them decide what you should do next.
D. Find loopholes in the original specifications so
that your company hasn’t legally violated the
specs.
C (tell the customer) is the correct answer
because it lets the customer decide what is in
their best interest given new information.
This may be tough, because your job may be on
the line and your company’s reputation may be at
stake.
Avoid deceptive acts
Act for each employer or client as faithful agents or
trustees
IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT THE CODE OF
ETHICS
It is not a legally binding document.
It is not something that we want (or need)
engineers to memorize.
It is something we want engineers to understand
and be able to live by as engineers.
However, in the beginning knowing the code is a
guide to understanding how to apply it.
ETHICS TAKES PRACTICE
KNOWLEDGE VS. BEHAVIOR
Unlike robots, no one can just program you to be
an ethical engineer that follows the codes.
It is possible to know the codes of ethics for
engineering (or being a student), yet fail to follow
them.
Ethical behavior is about practice and virtue. It
is about going beyond the codes, and practicing
behavior that leads to an ethical life.
LAW VS. MORALITY:
DON’T CONFUSE THE TWO
Legal Legal
& &
Moral Immoral
Illegal Illegal
& &
Moral Immoral
EXAMPLES OF THE CATEGORIES
Legal & Moral Designing a system to be
safe.
Legal & Immoral Owning a slave pre-civil
war in the US.
Illegal & Moral Parking in a no parking
zone, to come to the aid
of an injured person
Illegal & Killing an innocent
Immoral person.
ETHICS – COURAGE & INTEGRITY
As we will be seeing more and more being ethical
requires:
Courage to do the right thing the situation
calls for.
&
The integrity to withstand the pressures that
push you in the wrong direction.
