Ethics, Technology, and Engineering An Introduction

by van de Poel, Ibo; Royakkers, Lamber

• ISBN13: 9781444330946
• ISBN10: 1444330942
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-05-09
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell
• More Book Details
• Purchase Benefits

Summary

Featuring a wide range of international case studies, Ethics, Technology, and Engineering presents a unique and systematic approach for engineering students to deal with the ethical issues that are increasingly inherent in engineering practice. Utilizes a systematic approach to ethical case analysis -- the ethical cycle -- which features a wide range of real-life international case studies including the Challenger Space Shuttle, the Herald of Free Enterprise and biofuels. Covers a broad range of topics, including ethics in design, risks, responsibility, sustainability, and emerging technologies Can be used in conjunction with the online ethics tool Agora ( http://www.ethicsandtechnology.com) Provides engineering students with a clear introduction to the main ethical theories Includes an extensive glossary with key terms

Author Biography

Ibo van dc Poel is Associate Professor in Ethics and Technology at Delft University of Technology. He is an associate editor of the Handbook of' Philosophy of Technology and the Engineering Sciences (2009) and co-editor or Philosophy and Engineering (2010). He is project leader of the VCI project "New Technologies as Social Experiments: Conditions for Morally Responsible Experimentation" sponsored by the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. x
Introduction	p. 1
The Responsibilities of Engineers	p. 6
Introduction	p. 7
Responsibility	p. 9
Passive Responsibility	p. 10
Active Responsibility and the Ideals of Engineers	p. 13
Technological enthusiasm	p. 14
Effectiveness and efficiency	p. 16
Human welfare	p. 18
Engineers versus Managers	p. 21
Separatism	p. 21
Technocracy	p. 22
Whistle-blowing	p. 23
The Social Context of Technological Development	p. 25
Chapter Summary	p. 28
Study Questions	p. 29
Discussion Questions	p. 30
Codes of Conduct	p. 31
Introduction	p. 32
Codes of Conduct	p. 33
Professional codes	p. 34
Corporate codes	p. 40
Possibilities and Limitations of Codes of Conduct	p. 43
Codes of conduct and self-interest	p. 44
Vagueness and potential contradictions	p. 46
Can ethics be codified?	p. 48
Can codes of conduct be lived by?	p. 50
Enforcement	p. 52
Codes of Conduct in an International Context	p. 54
Global codes for multinationals	p. 54
Global codes for engineers	p. 58
Chapter Summary	p. 61
Study Questions	p. 62
	p. 63
Normative Ethics	p. 65
Introduction	p. 67
Ethics and Morality	p. 70
Descriptive and Normative Judgments	p. 71
Points of Departure: Values, Norms, and Virtues	p. 72
Values	p. 72
Norms	p. 74
Virtues	p. 75
Relativism and Absolutism	p. 75
Normative relativism	p. 76
Absolutism	p. 76
Ethical Theories77
Utilitarianism	p. 78
Jeremy Bentham	p. 79
Mill and the freedom principle	p. 84
Criticism of utilitarianism	p. 86
Applying utilitarianism to the Ford Pinto case	p. 88
Kantian Theory	p. 89
Categorical imperative	p. 90
Criticism of Kantian theory	p. 93
Applying Kant's theory to the Ford Pinto case	p. 95
Virtue Ethics	p. 95
Aristotle	p. 96
Criticism of virtue ethics	p. 98
Virtues for morally responsible engineers	p. 99
Care Ethics	p. 102
The importance of relationships	p. 102
Criticism of care ethics	p. 103
Care ethics in engineering	p. 103
Applied Ethics	p. 105
Chapter Summary	p. 106
Study Questions	p. 107
Discussion Questions	p. 108
Normative Argumentation	p. 109
Introduction	p. 110
Valid Arguments	p. 113
Deductive and Non-Deductive Arguments	p. 116
Arguments in Ethical Theories	p. 118
Argumentation by analogy	p. 118
Arguments in a utilitarian flea	p. 119
Argumentation in Kantian reasoning	p. 122
Argumentation in virtue-ethical reasoning	p. 126
Fallacies	p. 127
Some common fallacies in ethical discussions	p. 127
Fallacies of risk	p. 129
Chapter Summary	p. 131
Study Questions	p. 131
Discussion Questions	p. 132
The Ethical Cycle	p. 133
Introduction	p. 134
Ill-Structured Problems	p. 135
The Ethical Cycle	p. 137
Moral problem statement	p. 138
Problem analysis	p. 142
Options for actions	p. 143
Ethical evaluation	p. 145
Reflection	p. 146
An Example	p. 147
Moral problem statement	p. 149
Problem analysis	p. 150
Options for actions	p. 151
Ethical evaluation	p. 151
Reflection	p. 153
Collective Moral Deliberation and Social Arrangements	p. 155
Chapter Summary	p. 157
Study Questions	p. 158
Discussion Questions	p. 159
Ethical Questions in the Design of Technology	p. 161
Introduction	p. 163
Ethical Issues During the Design Process	p. 165
Problem analysis and formulation	p. 166
Conceptual design	p. 168
Simulation	p. 170
Decision	p. 171
Detail design	p. 173
Prototype development and testing	p. 174
Manufacture and construction	p. 175
Trade-offs and Value Conflicts	p. 177
Cost-benefit analysis	p. 180
Multiple criteria analysis	p. 183
Thresholds	p. 185
Reasoning	p. 187
Value Sensitive Design	p. 188
A comparison of the different methods	p. 189
Regulatory Frameworks: Normal and Radical Design	p. 190
Chapter Summary	p. 194
Study Questions	p. 194
Discussion Questions	p. 197
Designing Morality	p. 198
Introduction	p. 199
Ethics as a Matter of Things	p. 200
Technological Mediation	p. 201
Mediation of perception	p. 202
Mediation of action	p. 204
Moralizing Technology	p. 205
Criticizing the moral character of technological artifacts	p. 206
Taking mediation into ethics	p. 207
Designing Mediations	p. 211
Chapter Summary	p. 214
Study Questions	p. 215
Discussion Questions	p. 216
Ethical Aspects of Technical Bisks	p. 217
Introduction	p. 219
Definitions of Central Terms	p. 221
The Engineer's Responsibility for Safety	p. 223
Risk Assessment	p. 227
We reliability of risk assessments	p. 227
When are Risks Acceptable?	p. 228
Informed consent	p. 231
Do the advantages outweigh the risks?	p. 232
The availability of alternatives	p. 233
An: risks and benefits justly distributed	p. 234
Risk Communication	p. 236
Dealing with Uncertainty and Ignorance	p. 237
The precautionary principle	p. 238
Engineering as a societal experiment	p. 241
Chapter Summary	p. 244
Study Questions	p. 245
Discussion Questions	p. 247
The Distribution of Responsibility in Engineering	p. 249
Introduction	p. 250
The Problem of Many Hands	p. 252
The CitiCorp building	p. 253
Causes of the problem of many hands	p. 256
Distributing responsibility	p. 257
Responsibility and the Law	p. 258
Liability versus regulation	p. 259
Negligence versus strict liability	p. 260
Corporate liability	p. 263
Responsibility in Organizations	p. 263
Responsibility Distributions and Technological Designs	p. 267
Chapter Summary	p. 272
Study Questions	p. 273
Discussion Questions	p. 274
Sustainability, Ethics, and Technology	p. 277
Introduction	p. 278
Environmental Ethics?	p. 280
Environmental Problems	p. 281
Sustainable Development	p. 283
The Brundtland definition	p. 283
Moral justification	p. 284
Operationalization	p. 286
Can a Sustainable Society be Realized?	p. 289
Engineers and Sustainability	p. 291
Points of attention during the design process	p. 292
Life cycle analysis	p. 293
Chapter Summary	p. 298
Study Questions	p. 299
Discussion Questions	p. 300
Engineering Qualifications and Organizations in a Number of Countries	p. 301
NSPE Code of Ethics for Engineers	p. 307
FEANI Position Paper on Code of Conduct: Ethics and Conduct of Professional Engineers	p. 313
Shell Code of Conduct	p. 315
DSM Values and Whistle Blowing Policy	p. 320
Glossary	p. 329
References	p. 340
Index of Cases	p. 351
Index	p. 352
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