1. ELEC4011 Ethics & Electrical Engineering Practice Hugh Outhred
Lecture 2: Moral reasoning I (Chapter 2, Martin & Schinzinger, ‘Ethics in Engineering)
ELEC4011 Ethics & Electrical Engineering Practice
Hugh Outhred

2. The nature of moral inquiry
Some applications of ethics:
Understanding moral values, resolving moral issues & justifying moral judgements
Exploring questions that involve moral issues
Developing a system of moral values or code of ethics
Defining ‘moral behaviour’ or ‘right conduct’:
What ought to be done in a particular situation
What is right or wrong in how a situation was handled
What is good or bad about people, policies or beliefs
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

3. The nature of moral inquiry
Types of inquiry:
Normative:- to identify moral values
Conceptual:- to clarify concepts or ideas
Factual:- to explore specific situations or problems
Types of moral judgement:
Actions:- morally right or wrong
People:- morally responsible or irresponsible
Objective:- consistency in reasoning & decisions
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

4. Moral problems in engineering
Typical situations involve a moral dilemma:
Interests of an employer versus the public interest, e.g:
Unsafe products or built-in obsolescence
Extravagant claims of product performance
Interests of one community versus another, e.g:
A power station that causes local or global pollution
The impact of war on civilian populations
Pertinent moral questions:
What is the extent of an engineer’s responsibility?
When should one not obey orders of superiors?
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

5. Four approaches to moral reasoning
Virtue ethics:
Virtues & vices (good & evil behaviour & character)
Utilitarianism:
Actions that give the most good for the most people
Duty ethics:
Actions based on duties that respect persons
Rights ethics:
Actions that respect inalienable human rights:
Some philosophers extend the scope to include animals
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

6. Virtue ethics & professionalism
Cardinal principles of the IEAust code of ethics:
To respect the inherent dignity of the individual
To act on the basis of a well-informed conscience
To act in the interests of the community:
These principles are duties that express virtues:
Virtuous ways to interact with others
Desirable features of character
Equity is a core value
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

7. Conceptual basis for virtue ethics
Aristotle’s definitions of virtues (~350 BC):
Habits that enable us to engage effectively in rational activities:
Cardinal virtues:- wisdom, courage, temperance, justice
The golden mean between too much & too little:
Cowardice - Courage - Rashness
Macintyre’s definition of virtues (20th century):
Social practices that achieve public good, e.g:
Professional responsibility in engineering
Virtues are particularly valuable for group activity
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

8. Virtues & professional responsibility
Self-direction virtues:
Moral autonomy & good judgement
Self-knowledge & self-respect
Commitment & integrity
Public-spirited virtues:
Non-malfience
do no harm
Beneficence
prevent or remove harm
Generosity
beyond normal expectations
Team-work virtues:
Collegiality
Respect for legitimate authority
Communication skills
Proficiency virtues:
Mastery of technical skills
Diligence
Creativity
Accountability virtues:
Act responsibly
Admit mistakes & accept an appropriate share of blame
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

9. Issues in applying virtue ethics
Virtues may contradict each other, e.g:
Truthfulness & tact
Loyalty to employer vs responsibility to the public
Virtues provide general not specific advice:
Most useful in establishing a general code of conduct
Different societies rank virtues differently, e.g:
Collegiality versus self-reliance
Judgement is required in practical application:
May have to rank virtues to resolve a moral dilemma
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

10. ELEC4011 - Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I
Utilitarianism
Mill:- Act utilitarianism (19th century):
Act to maximise happiness for all concerned
(intellectual) happiness is the only intrinsic good
Focus on individual acts rather than general rules
Rules (eg. don’t deceive) can be broken to achieve greater good in a particular case
Brandt:- Rule utilitarianism (20th century):
Moral codes are primary even if they don’t always produce the greatest good
The best moral code produces the greatest good
Intrinsic goods include rational (informed) desires
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

11. Cost-benefit analysis
20th century attempt to quantify utilitarianism:
Compare the costs & benefits associated with an act
Choose actions for which benefits exceed costs
Issues in applying cost-benefit analysis:
Requires quantification of costs & benefits:
may not be easy, e.g: value of a human life
Requires quantification of uncertainty & risk:
e.g: risk of cancer due to exposure to electromagnetic fields
Distribution of costs & benefits may differ greatly:
Equity issues, e.g: choosing the site for a new airport
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

12. Issues in applying utilitarianism
Act-utilitarianism biased towards self-interest:
The decision maker should be impartial
Rule-utilitarianism supports codes of ethics:
May give non-optimal outcomes in some cases:
Where specific issues are of over-riding concern
Cost-benefit analysis can be too narrow:
Some costs & benefits difficult to quantify
Distribution of costs & benefits may differ
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

13. ELEC4011 - Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I
Duty ethics
Kant:- respect for persons (19th century):
Based on duties (not consequences) that:
Express respect for the autonomy of others
Are universal principles
Express unqualified commands (e.g. be honest)
Rawl’s two principles (20th century):
A person is entitled to the greatest liberty compatible with an equal amount for others
Differences in social power & economic benefits are only justifiable when they benefit the disadvantaged
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

14. Basis for Rawl’s principles
They would be agreed to by a rational person who:
Had a general knowledge of the human condition but:
Lacked all specific knowledge about him/herself
Had concern for his or her long term interests
Agreed to abide by the principles
Issues in applying duty ethics
Require compromise to resolve moral dilemmas:
Prima facie duties:- may be waved in some situations
Ranking, e.g. ‘protect life’ before ‘keep promises’
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

15. ELEC4011 - Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I
Rights ethics
Locke:- liberty rights (17th century):
Life, liberty & the property generated by labour
Used as a basis for libertarian ideology:
Self-reliance & rejection of state intervention
Melden:- liberty & welfare rights (20th century):
Human rights in the context of communities
Each individual must be provided with:
A valued role in society, the capacity to show concern & to be accountable
Welfare systems may be required to guarantee this
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

16. Issues in applying rights ethics
Special rights can be derived from basic rights:
The right to have promises kept
The right to privacy:
Implications for database & internet design
An engineer’s right to warn of danger to the public
The right to a meaningful occupation:
Important implications for automation
Require compromise to resolve moral dilemmas:
Be careful to rank rights rather than people
A right is only meaningful if it can be excercised
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

17. Relationship between ethics & laws
A legal framework (set of laws):
Developed by a State with authority to enforce
Penalty-based:- punishment for illegal behaviour
Ethics:
A code for personal (or group) behaviour:
Incentive-based:- personal & group esteem
Laws lag behind social & technical change, e.g:
Genetic engineering, rules for use of the internet
Ethics matter for engineers:- they intend to innovate
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I

18. ELEC4011 - Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I
Summary
Engineering innovation changes the way we live:
moral dilemmas can easily arise:
The interests of an employer may conflict with the public interest
Moral reasoning is concerned with distinguishing right from wrong
The four main approaches to moral reasoning all provide useful insights on ethical behaviour:
Virtue ethics, utilitarianism, duty ethics & rights ethics
ELEC Lecture 2: Moral Reasoning I