Unit-2

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Engineers make products & methods-to satisfy basic needs, food & shelter Spectacular human triumphs vs total disaster Benefits are more than losses Engineers decision have direct impact on society and the economy of the country study of moral issues and decisions confronting the engineers, organization in engineering

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Process of inquiry Related to moral issues Factual matter Specific to engineering

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2 approaches Micro ethics

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Typical everyday problems

Macro ethics
Societal problems that are not addressed until they unexpectedly resurface on a national scale

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Asking or investigation or search of knowledge Conducting a detailed survey about the project or a product to know its pros & cons 3 types Normative
General type of inquiry Seeking to identify values that should guide individuals and groups What ought to be and what is good

Conceptual inquiry
Clarify important concepts or ideas Whether the ideas are expressed by single words or by statements & Commands

Factual inquiry
Descriptive inquiries Info that has got bearing upon various issues

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These 3 types of inquiries are complimentary and interrelated Only with these ideas we can make a strong recommendation about what the engineers should do and should not do.

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Dilemma? Moral? Moral dilemma? 2 or more moral obligations, duties, rights and ideals come into conflict 3 situations:
Problems of vagueness Problems of conflicting reasons Problems of disagreement

Problems of vagueness
A gift- bribe?

Problems of conflicting reasons

Perfectly clear about which moral principles to apply But 2 or more clearly applicable moral principles come into conflict

Problems of disagreement
Reasonable and responsible engineers may disagree about how to interpret, apply moral reasons.

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Relevant moral factors & the reasons to be identified Facts Rank the importance of various moral considerations Alternative courses of action Discussion with colleagues A reasonable judgment- the most difficult part of course!

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How does studying EE helps you? To fulfill commitments we need Moral autonomy Autonomy? Moral autonomy? Training for moral concern? If not? Adult moral binding

Moral autonomy can be practiced by improving the following skills

Proficiency in recognizing moral problems Comprehending, clarifying & critically assessing arguments for & against moral issues Ability to form consistent and comprehensive view points based on relevant factors Creative solutions for practical difficulties Sensitivity for genuine difficulties & delicate issues Tolerance of differences among morally responsible people Maintain moral uprightness

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Lawrence Kohlbergs theory Carol Gilligan's theory

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Moral autonomy pertains to psychological theories of moral development. 3 levels of Moral development
Pre-conventional level Conventional level Post-conventional level

Pre-conventional level
Satisfy ones needs Individual is interested in things which directly benefits him Motivations @ this level? All young children & a few adults

Conventional level
To follow accepted norms & satisfy expectation of others Standards of morality? Motivations @ this level? Least concerned about the immediate effects on their self interest Most adults never mature beyond this stage

Post-conventional level
Do the others as you expect others to do you Standards of right & wrong Individuals morally autonomous- Kohlberg They have a moral desire to maintain their moral integrity, self respect & respect for other autonomous individuals Training @ earlier stage, this makes possible the growth @ Later stage beyond complete selfishness Only a few people in society reach this level

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Male Vs female- to attain moral autonomy Criticizes Kohlbergs theory as a male oriented one More men interested in trying to solve moral problems by applying moral principles Male professionals-solve moral dilemmas based on the most important moral rule Female professionals- try to preserve relationships with all people Focus greater attention on the context rather than general rule

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Ethics of care Vs ethics of rules and rights Both sometimes uses both kind of ethics Gilligan saw value in the context oriented reasoning of women 3 stages of growth towards ethics of care
Pre-conventional level Conventional level Post-conventional level

Pre-conventional level
roughly same as Kohlberg's 1st level Person is preoccupied with self centered reasoning Right conduct is viewed in a selfish manner

Conventional level
@ this level a person has no preoccupation Doesnt want to hurt others Sacrifice ones own interest for others Women?

Post Conventional level

Individual strikes a reasoned balance between caring about other people & pursuing ones own interest while exercising ones rights Aim is to balance ones own needs with the need of others

How does Gilligans theory of moral development relate to moral autonomy?

Moral autonomy is not separateness from other people But it requires independent thinking & reasoning based on moral concern This concern is caring for others & try to maintain personal relationship with all Moral autonomy cares for other people based on personal relationships- Gilligan Moral autonomy is sensitive to general principles & human rights- Kohlberg

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Moral autonomy- no assurance of same verdicts among various individuals Basic moral differences Inevitable in complex situations Tolerance Aim of teaching EE is not to produce an unanimous conformity of outlook The what? Need for authority Consensus concerning the role of authority is to be understood

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Moral autonomy & respect for authority are compatible

Moral autonomy- on the basis of moral concern for other people Authority in class room? Consensus Vs Controversy in class between teacher & students

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A tension between individuals need for autonomy & the need for consensus about authority
Conflicts between the 2 arises when authority is abused

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Savior Guardian Bureaucratic servant Social servant Social enabler & catalyst Game player

A comprehensive perspective on morality that clarifies, organizes and guides moral reflection Provides a framework for making moral choices and resolving moral dilemmas- not a simple formula Connections with Engineering code of ethics

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Utilitarianism Duty Ethics Rights Ethics Virtue Ethics Self realization ethics

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Considers a balance of good & bad consequences for everyone affected (society) Utility Engineers shall hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public in the performance of their duties Should we maximize the good effects of individual actions or good effects of general rules? Based on this utilitarianism takes 2 different forms

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Utilitarianism Vs Cost-Benefit analysis Are they one and the same? An e.g. ? Short comings
Costs and benefits of ? Omitted bad consequences of not informing the customers Focused on costs that could be quantified rather than taking into account additional good consequences like human happiness Short run

Considers the costs and benefits to everyone affected by a project or a proposal

Act utilitarianism ` Focuses on each situation and the alternative actions possible ` Most good for most people ` The standard can be applied at any moment ` In a class room? ` The rules should be broken whenever doing so will produce the most good ` Is it applicable for Engineering code of ethics?

Rule utilitarianism ` We should take rules, rather than isolated actions, much more seriously ` Right actions are those required by rules that produce the most good for the most people ` Richard Bandt- individual actions are morally justified when they are required by an optimal moral code.

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Act Vs rule utilitarianism At least sometimes they point in different directions Former permits some actions that we know are patently immoral An e.g. ? Act-utilitarianism permits in-justice by promoting social good at the expense of individuals

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Another area of disagreement among utilitariansJustified actions should maximize good consequences, but what is the standard for good consequences Intrinsic good? Some consider pleasure to be the only intrinsic good Doesnt it seem counterintutive?

Mill- happiness
A. A life rich in pleasures, mixed with some inevitable pains plus B. A pattern of activities & relationships that can affirm as valuable overall, as the way one wants ones life to be

On Liberty- importance of individual choices in charting a path to happiness Mill contended that the pleasures derived from love, friendship, intellectual inquiry, creative accomplishment inherently better than the bodily pleasures derived from eating, sex & exercise That contention is questionable?

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Mill suggested, majority view If we rank pleasures, shifting to a new theory of good Brandt- good: that satisfies rational desires Mill and Brandt both try to use an objective standard on what counts as good.

People have fundamental rights (like life, liberty, & property) that others have a duty to respect.

There are duties that should be performed (e.g.. Duty to treat others fairly or not to injure others) regardless of whether these acts do the most good or not.

These theories developed as distinct moral traditions, but their similarities are far more pronounced than their differences Both emphasize respect for individuals dignity and worth, in contrast with utilitarians view. Both are mirror images of each other

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Rights enter into engineering in many ways E.g.? Right to liberty, rights of employers, rights of employees All ethical theories leave room for rights But rights ethics is different, how? Constitutes moral authority to make legitimate moral demand on others to respect our choices, recognizing that others can make similar claims on us

Single most powerful moral concept in making cross cultural moral judgments about customs & laws Human rights Vs Legal rights

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Two forms of right ethics Liberty rights

Rights to exercise ones liberty & they place duties on others not to interfere with ones freedom

Welfare rights
Rights to benefits needed for a decent human life, when one cannot earn those benefits and when the community has them available

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The extent of welfare rights is controversial, especially when they enter into the law But most right ethicists affirm that both liberty & welfare human rights exist They contend that liberty rights imply at least some basic welfare rights

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1st version of right ethics conceives oh human rights as intimately related to communities of people Melden- having moral rights presupposes the capacity to show concern for others & to be accountable within a moral community Welfare rights- contextually determined 2nd version denies there are welfare human rights Libertarians

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John Locke- 3 most basic human rights: life, liberty & property French & American revolution Highly individualistic Rights- entitlements that prevent other people from meddling in ones life He thought property as whatever we gain by mixing our labor with things Today our understanding of property is far more complex

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Libertarians take a harsh view of taxes & Govt. Involvement beyond the bare minimum necessary for National defense and the preservation of free enterprise Special moral rights Grounded in human rights indirectly Purchase of a product- implicit contract But libertarians- members of public do not have an absolute right not to be harmed by technological products Right to informed consent

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Right actions- those required by duties to respect the liberty or autonomy of individuals Name a few important duties? Immanuel Kant (famous duty ethicist)- all such specific duties derive from one fundamental duty to respect persons Moral agents Autonomy Respect for persons amounts to

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Immorality? But dont we use one another? mere means to our goals Vs Autonomous agents who have their own goals Duties to ourselves A few? Act so that you treat humanity, whether in your own person or in that of another, always as an end and never as a means only- Kant

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Duties are universal- equally to all rational beings Golden rule: Do not do unto others what you would not want them to do to you Moral duties- Categorically imperative

Actions are considered right if they support good character traits (virtues) and wrong if they support bad character traits (vices) Closely tied to personal honor