PEM-II unit-II

Engineering Ethics

Topics covered in this Unit

• Engineering Ethics

• Consensus & Controversy

• Models of Professional Roles

• Theories about Right Action

• Self-Interest

• Customs & religion

• Uses of Ethical Theories

Read

• Textbook 1

• Ethics in Engineering

• Martin & Schinzinger

• Chapters 1 & 2

Engineering Ethics (1)

• Study of Moral Issues & Decisions confronting Individuals & Organisations engaged in Engineering

• Study of related Questions about Moral Ideals, Character, Policies & Relationships of people and Corporations involved in Technological activity

Engineering Ethics (2)

• Set of justified moral principles of Obligations, Rights & Ideals for people engaged in the field of engineering

• basis for finding correct solutions to problems arising while practicing the engineering profession

Consensus & Controversies

• Personal Interests, Greed, Pressure or sheer Ignorance influence individuals’ opinion of right & wrong

• Controversies arise with conflicts of interests

• The opinion is deemed correct when everyone agrees with it

• Consensus

Models of Professional Roles

• Saviour

• Guardian

• Bureaucratic Servant

• Social Servant

• Social Enabler & Catalyst

• Game Player

Saviour

• To redeem society from Poverty, Inefficiency, Waste & hard manual labour

• Thru technological developments that lead to material prosperity

• Applying engineering ways of thinking to large scale social planning

Guardian

• Knowledge & skills to create an ideal society

• expertise to decide in what is best for society

• To decide direction & pace of technology development

Bureaucratic Servant

• Corporate management to decide direction & pace of technological development

• Engineer to carry out the directives of the management

• Loyal servant who has skills to achieve the goals

Social Servant

• Obedient service to society

• Society expresses its interests either directly thru purchasing patterns

• Or indirectly, thru govt reps & consumer groups

• Coperate with management/govt to fulfil society’s desires

Social Enabler & Catalyst

• Similar to social servant model

• Fulfil society’s desires, and also

• Help management & society – to understand their needs &– suggest means of fulfilling them by tech

development

Game Player

• Neither servant nor master of anyone

• Play the game by extant rules

• Aim: succeed at the game

• Game: – development of technology– Resulting in advancement of society

Theories about Right Action (1)

• Virtue Ethics – Virtues & Vices

• Utilitarian – most good for most people

• Duty Ethics – goodwill & respect to others

• Rights Ethics – human rights

Self-Interest

• By nature, living things put their own interests, benefits & pleasures first, over and above others’

• Selfishness, egoism• Most vices are born fom this• Undesireable & unethical trait• Engineer’s duty: advancement of technology

for the benefits, comforts & better living standards of all human beings

Customs & Religion

• Play a significant role in the way in which the society thinks & acts

• Often leads to narrow-mindedness and conflicts & controversies

• Engineer should rise above such things

• Think & act in the interests of all human beings

Uses of Ethical Theories

• Resolving Moral Dilemmas

• Justifying Moral Obligations

• Relating Professional & Ordinary Morality

End of unit-II

we will discussEngineer’s Responsibilities

in unit-III