Engineering Ethics. ELEC 106 Fundamentals of ECE. You will face ethical dilemmas in your career count on it! Your decisions will affect:

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1 Engineering Ethics ELEC 106 Fundamentals of ECE You will face ethical dilemmas in your career count on it! Your decisions will affect: your professional reputation your employability the welfare of others Companies placing more value on ethics (or at least saying they are just ask Enron, WorldCom, and Volkswagen) Motivation 1

2 Branch of philosophy that deals with the general nature of good and bad and the specific moral obligations of and choices to be made by the individual in her/his relationship to others. Rules or standards governing conduct, especially those of a profession Rule-based ethics Utilitarian ethics (The decision that produces the highest good for all people involved) Ethical Theory in a Nutshell Morals - concerned with principles of right and wrong and the decisions that derive from these principles Principles - fundamental laws or rules, from which morals are derived, that govern behavior Values - something that a person or group believes to be valuable or worthwhile Ethics, Morals, and Values 2

3 Apply a set of rules to make all decisions Based upon the principles: Universality: reasons for action that all people in society could accept. Transitivity: you would accept others applying the same decision to you. Conditional rule-based ethics Certain conditions under which an individual can break a rule The moral good of the situation outweighs the rule Rule-Based Ethics Is it ethical to accept a job offer with a company, then change your mind and decline the offer if you subsequently receive a better offer from another company? How do you avoid being put in this situation? Is it ethical to go on a job interview with a company that you have no intention working for? Questions 3

4 - A man without ethics is a wild beast loosed upon the world Albert Camus, Nobel laureate, author and philosopher - Ethical people do the right thing when no one is watching LTG John Rosa, 19 th President of The Citadel Other Thoughts - The study of moral issues and decisions confronting individuals and organizations involved in engineering - The study of related questions about moral conduct, character, ideals and relationships of peoples and organizations involved in technological development (Martin and Schinzinger, Ethics in Engineering). Engineering Ethics 4

5 - National Society of Professional Engineers - Designed to provide positive stimulus for ethical conduct, helpful guidance and advice concerning the primary and basic obligations of engineers. - Establishes the ethical guideposts for the NSPE Board of Ethical Review in interpreting ethical dilemmas submitted by engineers, public officials, and members of the public. - NSPE Code of Ethics 5

6 As a Professional Engineer, I dedicate my professional knowledge and skill to the advancement and betterment of human welfare. I pledge: To give the utmost of performance; To participate in none but honest enterprise; To live and work according to the laws of man and the highest standards of professional conduct; To place service before profit, the honor and standing of the profession before personal advantage, and the public welfare above all other considerations. In humility and with need for Divine Guidance, I make this pledge. Adopted by National Society of Professional Engineers, June 1954 Engineers Creed - Electrical and Computer Engineering discipline has two professional societies/ organizations - Institute of Electrical and Electronics engineers (IEEE) - Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) - IEEE Code of Ethics applies broadly to the electrical, computing, and software fields - IEEE Code of Ethics 6

7 We, the members of the IEEE, in recognition of the importance of our technologies in affecting the quality of life throughout the world, and in accepting a personal obligation to our profession, its members and the communities we serve, do hereby commit ourselves to the highest ethical and professional conduct and agree: 1. to accept responsibility in making decisions consistent with the safety, health and welfare of the public, and to disclose promptly factors that might endanger the public or the environment; 2. to avoid real or perceived conflicts of interest whenever possible, and to disclose them to affected parties when they do exist; 3. to be honest and realistic in stating claims or estimates based on available data; 4. to reject bribery in all its forms; 5. to improve the understanding of technology, its appropriate application, and potential consequences; 6. to maintain and improve our technical competence and to undertake technological tasks for others only if qualified by training or experience, or after full disclosure of pertinent limitations; 7. to seek, accept, and offer honest criticism of technical work, to acknowledge and correct errors, and to credit properly the contributions of others; 8. to treat fairly all persons regardless of such factors as race, religion, gender, disability, age, or national origin; 9. to avoid injuring others, their property, reputation, or employment by false or malicious action; 10. to assist colleagues and co-workers in their professional development and to support them in following this code of ethics. Approved by the IEEE Board of Directors, February 2006 Ethical Dilemmas 7

8 Not always obvious and can be quite subtle We have invested a lot of time and money in the design We really need this system to work The company s future depends upon this Is there any way that we can make adjustments to make it pass the certification? Is it close enough that we could certify it? It really meets the needs and the standard has a margin of error built into it. Ethical Dilemmas ethical yes III IV no I II no yes legal Handling Ethical Dilemmas 8

9 Harm test Reversibility test Colleague test Legality test Publicity test (Newspaper test) Common practice test Wise relative test Tests 1. The harm to the public must be considerable or serious. 2. Concerns must have been made to your superiors (up to the CEO) without satisfactory resolution. 3. You have documented evidence that would convince an impartial observer that your company is wrong. 4. Release of the information outside of the company will prevent the harm. Whistleblower Guidelines 9

10 1. Gather information - known vs unknown, assumptions 2. Identify the stakeholders - people affected by the decision 3. Consider the relevant ethical values - NSPE, IEEE code of ethics, legal issues 4. Determine the best course of action - identify alternative decisions/actions - interest of stakeholders vs ethics Case Study Analysis Steps Video: Think back to the three aspects of engineering Did they have experience? Did they have knowledge? Were any rules of practice violated? Apply the case study analysis steps to determine if it was an ethical failure? The Challenger Disaster 10