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The document discusses the importance of a moral framework in engineering ethics, highlighting its role in making moral choices and resolving dilemmas. It outlines five types of ethical theories and presents a case study involving an engineer's decision-making regarding software safety in relation to public health. Additionally, it explores concepts of ethical egoism and psychological egoism, prompting discussions on morality versus self-interest.

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2 views

Lec4_5

The document discusses the importance of a moral framework in engineering ethics, highlighting its role in making moral choices and resolving dilemmas. It outlines five types of ethical theories and presents a case study involving an engineer's decision-making regarding software safety in relation to public health. Additionally, it explores concepts of ethical egoism and psychological egoism, prompting discussions on morality versus self-interest.

Uploaded by

mytinhsz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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PE020IU

Engineering Ethics
and Professional Skills

Lecture 4+5: Moral Framework for Engineering Ethics

Instructor: Dr. Huynh Vo Trung Dung


School of Electrical Engineering

1
Why A Moral Framework?

- It illuminates connections
between engineering codes of
ethics and everyday morality
- It helps make moral choices,
resolve moral dilemmas

2
Types of Ethical Theories!
• 5 types of ethical theories:
• Rights ethics?
• Duty ethics?
• Utilitarianism?
• Virtue ethics?
• Self-realization ethics?

3
Class Activity
• 5 types of ethical
theories:
• Rights ethics?
• Duty ethics?
• Utilitarianism?
• Virtue ethics?
• Self-realization ethics?

4
Discuss Question
Americans are sometimes criticized for being too
individualistic, and in particular for approaching moral
issues with too great an emphasis on rights. Although we
said that rights and duties are usually correlated with
each other, what difference (if any) do you think would
occur if Jefferson had written, “We hold these truths to be
self-evident; that all people are created equal; that they
owe duties of respect to all other persons, and are owed
these duties in return”?

10
Case Study
Engineer A is employed by a software company and is involved in the design of specialized
software in connection with the operations of facilities affecting the public health and safety
(i.e., nuclear, air quality control, water quality control). As the part of the design of a
particular software system, Engineer A conducts extensive testing and although the tests
demonstrate that the software is safe to use under existing standards, Engineer A is aware of
new draft standards that are about to be released by a standard setting organization-
standards which the newly designed software may not meet. Testing is extremely costly and
the company’s clients are eager to begin to move forward. The software company is eager to
satisfy its clients, protect the software company’s finances, and protect existing jobs; but at
the same time, the management of the software company wants to be sure that the software
is safe to use. A series of tests proposed by Engineer A will likely result in a decision whether
to move forward with the use of the software. The tests are costly and will delay the use of
the software by at least six months, which will put the company at a competitive
disadvantage and cost the company a significant amount of money. Also, delaying
implementation will mean the state public service commission utility rates will rise
significantly during this time. The company requests Engineer A’s recommendation
concerning the need for additional software testing. What should A do?

14
Community-Oriented Version
The community-oriented version of self-realization ethics
says that each individual ought to pursue self-realization,
but it emphasizes the importance of caring relationships
and communities in understanding self-realization. It
emphasizes that we are social beings whose identities and
meaning are linked to the communities in which we
participate.

“The ‘individual’ apart from the community is an


abstraction. It is not anything real, and hence not
anything that we can realize. . . . I am myself by sharing
with others.”
F. H. Bradley, Ethical Studies (New York: Oxford University Press,
19
Ethical Egoism
• Ethical egoism is a more individualistic version of self-realization ethics
that says each of us ought always and only to promote our self-interest.
• Ethical egoism sounds like an endorsement of selfishness. It implies that
engineers should think first and last about what is beneficial to
themselves, an implication at odds with the injunction to keep paramount
the public health, safety, and welfare

 Psychological egoism: All people are always and only motivated by what
they believe is good for them in some respect. Psychological egoism is a
theory about psychology, about what actually motivates human beings,
whereas ethical egoism is a statement about how they ought to act.

There is four arguments for psychological egoism!

20
Psychological Egoism

• Argument 1. We always act on our own desires; therefore, we


always and only seek something for ourselves, namely the
satisfaction of our desires.
• Argument 2. People always seek pleasures; therefore they
always and only seek something for themselves, namely their
pleasures.
• Argument 3. We can always imagine there is an ulterior,
exclusively self-seeking motive present whenever a person
helps someone else; therefore people always and only seek
goods for themselves.
• Argument 4. When we look closely, we invariably discover an
element of self-interest in any given action; therefore people are
21
Discussion Question

Discuss what morality requires and then what self-interest


requires. Is the answer the same or different?

Bill, a process engineer, learns from a former classmate


who is now a regional compliance officer with the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
that there will be an unannounced inspection of Bill’s
plant. Bill believes that unsafe practices are often
tolerated in the plant, especially in the handling of toxic
chemicals. Although there have been small spills, no
serious accidents have occurred in the plant during the 22

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