Responsible Engineers Framing the Problem

How do we address a problem? When addressing an ethical dilemma, we usually experience moral disagreement and controversy within a context of agreement Need a procedure to follow Tools to approach problem –Line drawing –Creative middle way

1st Phase of Moral Thinking Scenario Experience Personal Morality Common Morality Codes of Ethics Ethical Sense ?’s Problems Analysis Feedback Loop

Common Morality Shared common beliefs Can still have disagreements Common features for moral beliefs –Vulnerability –Autonomy –Interdependency –Shared expectations and goals –Common moral traits

Common Morality Common moral rules –Don’t harm others –Make reparations for any harms done –Don’t lie or cheat –Don’t break promises –Don’t interfere with freedom of others –Respect others’ decisions –Treat others fairly –Help those in need –etc

Moral Justification Common morality is subject to criticism and change Want an ultimate foundation of morality Form consensus with moral values accepted by almost everyone Used to frame ethics codes

Analyzing a Case Primary task - Assemble information relevant to the resolution of the ethical dilemma(s) –What are the relevant facts? –What are the relevant kinds of ethical considerations?

Analyzing a Case - Sample Steve is under pressure to complete his graduate research and finish his degree He must write a research report Most of the data support his conclusion, but some are at variance Convinced he is right, Steve wants to drop the ambiguous data Is it unethical for Steve to do this?

Analyzing a Case - Sample Codes: –An engineer should be honest –An engineer should report all findings –An engineer should be objective Even though Steve is not trying to present a false conclusion, he is not being truthful. If he can rationalize this, what else might he rationalize? Steve should present all data, unless he can mathematically justify exclusion

Issues Many times moral disagreements turn out to be disagreements over the relevant facts Factual issues are sometimes very difficult to resolve Once the factual issues are clearly isolated, disagreement can reemerge on another and even more clearly defined level

Issues Discerning relevant facts Weighing the importance of facts Relevant facts Known factsUnknown facts Unknown relevant facts

Issues Once the facts are available, other problems may arise Conceptual issues - disagreements in defining terms and concepts Application issues - disagreements on applying agreed-upon terms

Analysis Tools Line Drawing - Can help decide a course of action Negative ParadigmPositive Paradigm Negative feature 1Positive feature 1 Negative feature 2Positive feature 2 Negative feature 3Positive feature 3 Negative feature 4Positive feature 4

Analysis Tools Line Drawing - points to remember –The more ambiguous the case, the more we must know about it –Imposing a line of demarcation involves an element of arbitrariness –Concentrating on only one feature is usually insufficient to decide –Resembles a kind of common-law ethics

Application Andrea, a chemical engineer, recognizes that some of the ideas she developed for her former employer provide the basis for a solution to a problem faced by her new employer. The two companies are not competitors, and the application of the ideas is so different that few people would even recognize them as having a common origin. She did sign an agreement with her former employer to not use her ideas to compete against them. Is it ethical for her to employ her old ideas in this new and creative way?

Application Negative Paradigm Positive Paradigm (Clearly wrong) (Clearly acceptable) Signed Agreement Permission granted A and B competitors A and B not competitors Application the same Application different A’s ideas Andrea’s ideas Proprietary information Freely available It should be ok for Andrea to use the ideas for this purpose.

Analysis Tools Creative middle way solutions - Conflicting values (when you’re between a rock and a hard place!) –Situations in which two or more moral rules apply, but appear to conflict –Perhaps one value will clearly take priority (easy choice) –Often, no easy choice is available (hard choice) –Can we suggest one or more possible solutions (compromises?) to correct the situation (creative middle way)

Analysis Tools - Creative Middle Way Analysis Conflicting Obligations Further Analysis Easy Choice Find Creative Middle Way? Hard Choice Feedback to factual, conceptual, or moral issues as necessary Resolution Stop

Addressing a Moral Problem When addressing an ethical dilemma, we usually experience moral disagreement and controversy within a context of agreement Need a procedure to follow Tools to approach problem –Line drawing –Creative middle way