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Lec 05

The document outlines the syllabus and scope of Engineering Ethics (EE), emphasizing the importance of moral values in guiding the engineering profession. It discusses various ethical issues, approaches, and inquiries related to workplace ethics and product safety. Additionally, it highlights the need for ethical training and the establishment of standards to promote ethical conduct among engineers.

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Mohammad Ali Manik
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13 views16 pages

Lec 05

The document outlines the syllabus and scope of Engineering Ethics (EE), emphasizing the importance of moral values in guiding the engineering profession. It discusses various ethical issues, approaches, and inquiries related to workplace ethics and product safety. Additionally, it highlights the need for ethical training and the establishment of standards to promote ethical conduct among engineers.

Uploaded by

Mohammad Ali Manik
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Lecture-05

MSE 4211
Engineering
Ethics-1

Md. Mafidul Islam, Lecturer


Dept. of MSE, KUET
Ethics vs. engineering ethics, engineering and professionalism,
psychological basis of Ethics, Religion and ethics, egoism and
relativism, utilitarianism and rational utilitarianism, ethics and
other branches of knowledge, intuitionism. Concept of moral
thoughts and moral judgment, bases of human behaviour,

Syllabus moral development and easoning, morality, and social


institution, moral rights and duties, interpersonal moral
MSE 4211 – Professional sentiment, occupational culture and ideology, occupational
Ethics stress, morality and religion, organizational commitment,
Credit: 3.00 morality in the international context.
Credit Hours: 3hrs/week Professionalism and codes of ethics, engineering as social
experimentation, institutional ethics, academic ethics,
understanding ethical problems, ethical problems solving
techniques, professional responsibilities, professional rights,
environmental ethics, computer ethics, analyzing issues of
ethical problems, utilitarian thinking respect for persons.

2
Engineering Ethics (EE)
Engineering Ethics is the activity and discipline aimed at
understanding the moral values to guide engineering profession
(a) Resolving moral issues in engineering, and
(b) Justifying the moral judgments in engineering.
It deals with a set of moral problems and issues connected with
engineering.
Engineering ethics is defined by the codes and standards of
conduct endorsed by engineering (professional) societies regarding
the particular set of beliefs, attitudes, and habits displayed by the
individual or group.
3
Scope of EE
The scope of engineering ethics are two fold:

1) Ethics of the workplace which involves the co-workers and


employees in an organization.

2) Ethics related to the product or work which involves the


transportation, warehousing, and use, besides the safety of the end
product and the environment outside the factory.

4
Approach of EE
There are conventionally two approaches in the study of ethics:
1) Micro-ethics which deals with decisions and problems of
individuals, professionals, and companies.

2) Macro-ethics which deals with the societal problems on a


regional/national level. For example, global issues, and collective
responsibilities of groups such as professional societies and
consumer groups.

5
Sense of Engineering Ethics
There are two different senses (meanings) of engineering ethics, namely
the Normative and the Descriptive senses.
The normative sense includes:
(a) Knowing moral values, finding accurate solutions to moral
problems, and justifying moral judgments in engineering practices,
(b) Study of decisions, policies, and values that are morally desirable
in the engineering practice and research, and
(c) Using codes of ethics and standards and applying them in their
transactions by engineers.

The descriptive sense refers to what specific individual or group of


engineers believe and act, without justifying their beliefs or actions.
6
Variety of Moral Issues

o Why and how do moral issues (problems) arise in a profession


or why do people behave unethically?

o Reasons are classified into 3 categories:


❑ Resource Crunch
❑ Opportunity
❑ Attitude

7
Resource Crunch
▪ Due to pressure, through time limits,
▪ Due to money or budgetary constraints, and
▪ Technology decay or obsolescence.
▪ Pressure from the government to complete the project in
time (e.g., before the elections),
▪ Reduction in the budget because of sudden war or natural
calamity (e.g., Tsunami) and
▪ Obsolescence (backdated) due to technology innovation by the
competitor leads to manipulation and unsafe and unethical
execution of projects.
8
Opportunity
(a) Double standards or behavior of the employers towards the employees
and the public.
(b) Management projecting their own interests more than that of their
employees. Some organizations over-emphasize short-term gains and results
at the expense of themselves and others,
(c) Emphasis on results and gains at the expense of the employees, and,
(d) Management by objectives, without focus on empowerment and
improvement of the infrastructure.

This is best encountered by developing policies that allow ‘conscience


keepers’ and whistle-blowers and appointing an ombudsman, who can work
confidentially with people to solve the unethical problems internally.
9
Attitude
Poor attitude of the employees set in due to

(a) Low morale of the employees because of dissatisfaction and


downsizing,
(b) Lack of promotion or career development policies or denied
promotions,
(c) Lack of transparency,
(d) Absence of recognition and reward system, and
(e) Poor working environments.

10
Solution
▪ Giving ethics training for all,
▪ Recognizing ethical conduct in the workplace,
▪ Including ethics in performance appraisal, and
▪ Encouraging open discussion on ethical issues, are some
of the directions to promote positive attitudes among the
employees.
▪ To get a firm and positive effect, ethical standards must
be set and adopted by the senior management.

11
Types of Inquiries

The three types of inquiries, in solving ethical problems are:

▪ Normative inquiry, (what is morally right or wrong)


▪ Conceptual inquiry, and
▪ Factual or descriptive inquiry.

12
Normative Inquiry
It seeks to identify and justify the morally desirable norms or
standards that should guide individuals and groups. Normative
questions are about what ought to be and what is good, based on
moral values.

1) How far does the obligation of engineers to protect public


safety extend in any given situation?
2) When, if ever, should engineers be expected to blow the
whistle on the dangerous practices of their employers?

13
Conceptual Inquiry
It is directed to clarify the meaning of concepts or ideas or
principles that are expressed by words or by questions and
statements. For example,

(a) What is meant by safety?


(b) How is it related to risk?
(c) What is a bribe?
(d) What is a profession?

14
Factual Inquiry
Also known as descriptive inquiry, it is aimed at obtaining facts
needed for understanding and resolving value issues.
Researchers conduct factual inquiries using mathematical or
statistical techniques. The facts provide not only the reasons for
moral problems but also enable us to develop alternative ways of
resolving moral problems. For example,

1. How were the benefits assessed?


2. What are the procedures followed in risk assessment?
3. What are the short-term and long-term effects of drinking water
being polluted?
15
Thank you
Md. Mafidul Islam
+8801795853593
[email protected]

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