Code of Ethics

Code of Ethics
Professionalism
Code of ethics

Is Engineering a Profession
Job
Any

work for hire, regardless of the skill level

and responsibility granted

Occupation
Employment

through which someone makes

a living

Profession

What is profession
Work that requires sophisticated skills, the use
of judgment and the exercise of discretion. Not
routine and is not capable of being mechanized.
Membership in the profession requires
extensive formal education, not simply practical
training
To set standards for admission to the
profession, to set standards of conduct for
members and to enforce
Significant public good results from the practice
of the profession (Martin and Schinzinger 2000)
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Requirements to be a Profession
Requires extensive skills
Judgment: decision based on
academic/formal training, gives serous
impact to lives of people
Discretion- in performing ones duty and
keeping confidentiality of patent

Requirements to be a Profession
Carpentry
Require

special skills
But many work can be mechanized
A little judgment and discretion required
Training in Carpentry not formal but rather is
practical
So Carpentry doesnt meet the requirements to be a
profession
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Engineering as a Profession
Requires extensive and sophisticated
skills
Discretion is required: intellectual
property, business information
confidentiality, etc.
Judgment

Engineering as a Profession
Mechanization
Cannot

be mechanized
Each new situation that requires new design
and modification
E.g. CAD is a tool and this should not be
mistaken for mechanization.
Requires extensive formal education/training
Serve for the public good
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Engineering and Other Profession

Engineering
Medical
Lawyer

Herbert Hoovers view (31st President of the

US)

The great liability of the engineer compared to men

of other professions is that his works are out in
the open where all can see them. His acts, step
by step, are in hard substance. He cannot bury
his mistakes in the grave like doctors. He cannot
argue them into thin air or blame the judge like
the lawyers. He cannot, like the architects, cover
his failures with trees and vines. He cannot, like
the politicians, screen his shortcomings by
blaming his opponents and hope that the people
will forget. The engineer simply cannot deny that
he did it. If his works do not work, he is damned.
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Aspects of Professional Societies

Sociologists opinion
Social-contract
Business

Model

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Aspects of Professional Societies

Social-contract
As being set up primarily to further the
Public Good
Implicit social contract
Society grants such as high pay, a
high status, etc.
In return society receives services
provided by the profession
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Aspects of Professional Societies

Business Model
Professions function as a means for
furthering the economic advantage
of the members
Labor unions for elite,
limiting the number of practitioners of
the profession
Artificially inflating the salaries of its
members
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Engineering as a Profession
How does Engineering fit in Socialcontract and Business model?

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Code of Ethics
Codes of Ethic express
The

right
Duties
Obligations of the members of the profession

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What is code of ethic?

Framework for ethical judgment for a professional
No code can be totally comprehensive and cover
all possible ethical situation
Rather, code serve as a starting point for ethical
decision making
Code also express commitment to ethical conduct
shared by members of a profession.
Code defines the roles and responsibilities of
professionals (Harris, Pritchard and Robins, 2000)
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Importance of Codes (refer: Martin, M.W.)

Serving and Protecting the public:
Professionals

stand in a fiduciary
relationship with the public.
Code of ethics functions as a commitment by
the profession as a whole that engineers will
serve the public health, safety and welfare.

Guidance:
Codes

provide general guidance on the main

obligation of engineers.
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Importance of Codes (contd.)

Inspiration:
Code

expresses collective commitment to

ethics
Positive motivation for ethical conduct

Shared standards:
Profession

establishes explicit standards

Public is assured of a minimum standard of
excellence on which it can depend
engineers.
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Importance of Codes (contd.)

Support for responsible professionals:
Positive

support to professionals to act

ethically
Can serve as legal support for engineers for
professional obligations

Education and mutual understanding:

Widely

circulated and officially approved by

professional societies
Codes can be used in the classroom to
discuss and reflect moral issue
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Importance of Codes (contd.)

Discipline:
Formal

basis for investigating unethical

conduct
Some professional societies do suspend or
expel members whose professional conduct
has been proven unethical

Contributing to the professionals image

Codes

can present a positive image to the

public
Can help engineers more effectively serve
the public where the image is warranted

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What a code of ethic is not?

Is not a recipe for ethical behavior; it is only
a framework for arriving at good ethical
choice
Is never a substitute for sound judgment
Is not a legal document?????
Code of ethics doesnt create new moral or
ethical principles. These principles are well
established in the society, and foundations
of such go many centuries back.
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How does a code of ethics help

achieve goals?
Help create environment within a profession
where ethical behavior is the norm
Serves as a guide or reminder of how to act in a
specific situation
Code provides a backup for an individual who is
being pressured by a superior to behave
unethically
A support for a collective sense of correct
behavior
Code can indicate to others that the profession
is seriously concerned about responsibility,
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professional conduct.