INTRODUCTION TO

PROFESSIONAL ETHICS
Occupation vs Profession?
Occupation vs Profession?
 Occupation is simply a way to make a living,
however, a profession has some or all the following
characteristics:
1. Extensive training
2. Vital knowledge and skills
3. Control of services
4. Autonomy in workplace
5. Claim to ethical guidelines
Characteristics of profession
 1- Extensive training
 It means apprenticeship and practical skills

 Formal education from academic institute teach

theoretical bases of these skills (Bachelors or Masters).
 The requirement of university training serves as a
barrier to limit the number of professionals and thus to
provide them with an economic advantage.
Characteristics of profession
 2- Vital knowledge and skills:
 Professionals have “expert power” i.e., people are dependent
on the knowledge and research of engineers for the safety in
an airplane.
 Since professional services are vital to the general welfare, so
citizens are willing to pay any price to get them.
Characteristics of profession
 3- Control of services:
 Professions usually have a monopoly on the provision of
professional services in their area.
 There is a licensing system for those who want to enter the
profession
 E.g., PEC in Pakistan
Characteristics of profession
 4- Autonomy in the workplace:
 Professional has sufficient knowledge to determine the
appropriate professional services in a given situation
 E.g., physicians must determine the most appropriate type of
medical treatment for their patients
 Higher level of autonomy may lead to promotion of self
interest, and unethical practices. E.g., a physician might order
more tests than necessary because they are performed by a
firm in which she has a financial interest
Characteristics of profession
 5- Claim to ethical regulation:
 There are chances for misuse and abuse of power
 Most professions attempt to limit these abuses by regulating
themselves for the public benefit. E.g., code of ethics, and code
of conduct are provided by PEC in Pakistan
 These regulatory agencies are controlled by professionals
themselves, and so the claim to genuine ethical regulation is
sometimes seen to be suspicious.
To what extent does engineering
qualify as profession?

 In terms of characteristics of professions discussed earlier,

engineering is a borderline profession because:
1. Engineers have extensive training and possess knowledge
and skills that are vital to the public.
2. However, engineers do not have anything like complete
control of engineering services because a license is not
required to practice many types of engineering.
3. Only licensed engineers are governed by a compulsory
code of ethics.
4. Engineers who work in large organizations and are subject
to the authority of managers and employers may have
limited autonomy.
Progression of engineering tasks
 Possible ethical issues in Engineering
Tasks Possible problems
Conceptual design Violation of patents or trade secrets. Product to be used illegally.
Goals; performance Design depends on unavailable or untested materials.
specifications
Simulation, Testing of prototype done only under most favorable conditions or not
prototyping completed.
Design Too tight for adjustments during manufacture and use.
specifications
Scheduling of tasks Promise of unrealistic completion date based on insufficient allowance
for unexpected events.
Purchasing Specifications written to favor one vendor. Bribes, kickbacks.
Inadequate testing of purchased parts.
Fabrication of parts Variable quality of materials and workmanship. Bogus materials and
components not detected.
Assembly/ Workplace safety. Disregard of repetitive-motion stress on workers.
construction Poor control of toxic wastes.
 Possible ethical issues in Engineering
Tasks Possible problems
Quality control Tests rushed or results falsified.
Advertising and sales False advertising (availability, quality).

Safety measures and Reliance on overly complex, failure-prone safety

devices devices. Lack of a simple “safety exit.”
Use Used inappropriately or for illegal applications. Operations manuals
not ready.
Maintenance, parts, Hesitation to recall the product when found to be faulty.
repairs
Monitoring effects of No formal procedure for following life cycle of product,
product its effects on society and environment.
Recycling/disposal Lack of attention to ultimate dismantling, disposal of
product, public notification of hazards.
Ethics (Dictionary meaning)
 The philosophical study of moral values and rules
 The principles of right and wrong that are accepted
by an individual or a social group
Basic types of ethics
1. Common Ethics
 Common morality is the set of moral beliefs shared by
almost everyone.
 E.g., It is wrong to murder, lie, cheat or steal, break
promises, harm others physically, and so forth.
Basic types of ethics
2. Personal Ethics
 It is the set of moral beliefs that a person holds.
 We believe that murder, lying, cheating, and stealing
are wrong.
 However, our personal moral beliefs may differ from
common morality in some areas, especially where
common morality seems to be unclear or in a state of
change. E.g., vegetarians vs. others
 Basic types of ethics
3. Professional Ethics:
 Professional ethics is the set of standards adopted by
professionals in their field.
 Unlike common and personal ethics, professional ethics is
usually stated in a formal code.
 Professional codes of ethics of a given profession focus on the
issues that are important in that profession.
 When one is in a professional relationship, professional ethics is
supposed to take precedence over personal morality
 Significance of professional ethics: People can justifiably have
certain expectations of a professional, even if they have no
knowledge of the personal morality of the professional. E.g.,
confidentiality in case of lawyers
 Dilemma of professional ethics
 A complication occurs when the professional’s personal
morality and professional ethics conflict.
 For example, to discuss religion and politics in classes vs.
not to discuss them.
 Some professions have made provisions for exceptions to
professional obligations based on personal ethics. E.g., a
civil engineer who has strong personal environmental
commitments can refer a project to other engineer if it
causes damage to land.
 But do u see any problem in this practice?
 Dilemma of professional ethics (Contd.)

 Sometimes the conflicts between professional ethics,

personal morality, and common morality are difficult to
resolve.
 It is not always obvious that professional ethics should take
priority, and in some cases a professional might simply
conclude that her professional ethics is simply wrong and
should be changed.
 E.g., confidentiality in engineering can be broken if the
public interest requires it.
 How to solve cases related to ethics?

1. Normative ethics:
“What should be the ethical practices of an organizations?”
2. Descriptive ethics:
“What are the current ethical practices of an organization?”
3- Prescriptive measures:
“What should be done to fill the gap between descriptive
ethics and normative ethics?”
THE NEGATIVE FACE OF ENGINEERING
ETHICS: PREVENTIVE ETHICS
 Ethics which prevent, prohibit or restrict certain activity
is called preventive ethics. Examples:
 ‘Engineers shall not reveal facts, data, or information
without the prior consent of the client or employer
except as authorized by law or this Code.’’
 ‘‘engineers shall approve only those engineering
documents that are in conformity with applicable
standards.’’
Examples of preventive ethics
 The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Case.
 The DC-10 Case.
THE POSITIVE FACE OF ENGINEERING
ETHICS: ASPIRATIONAL ETHICS
 These are aspirations or ideals in professionals to
promote the welfare of the public.
 Aspirational ethics promote certain activities which
lead to public welfare.
 Types of aspirational Ethics
 Good works:  Ordinary Positive
 Good works refers to the Engineering:
more outstanding and  Many aspirational ethics
altruistic examples of are done in the course of
aspirational ethics that often one’s job, and they do not
involve an element of self- involve any heroism or self-
sacrifice sacrifice.
 It goes beyond basic  These are not conscious or
requirements associated with creative attempts to do
a profession something that contributes
to human welfare.
 Types of aspirational Ethics (Contd.)
 Good works cases:  Ordinary Positive
 The Sealed-Beam Engineering cases:
Headlight.  An Experimental Automobile
 Air Bags.  An Auditory Visual Tracker
Revision
 Defining a profession.
 A flow chart of possible activities in engineering
 Ethical issues on each stage
 Defining ethics and its types
 Dilemma of professional ethics
 Preventive ethics vs Aspirational ethics