Engineering and Ethics: Truthfulness Lecture 8

Lecture 8: Truth and Truthfulness

• Course: Introduction to Engineering and Ethics
• Instructor: Asst. Prof. Mete Öğüç
• Course Code: 1400111011

Trust and Reliability in Engineering

• Trust in engineers is paramount in a world reliant on specialized knowledge.
• This lecture explores the ethical foundations of trust, focusing on honesty, confidentiality, intellectual property, expert witnessing, public communication, and conflicts of interest.

Virtue of Honesty

• Honesty is a fundamental virtue in engineering.
• Engineers must be truthful and avoid deception, even when unobserved.
• Honesty is a deeply ingrained character trait that guides actions.

Respect for Persons

• Dishonesty undermines the moral agency of individuals.
• It prevents informed decision-making, violates autonomy, and restricts the ability to make free choices.

Forms of Dishonesty

• Lying: Intentionally conveying false or misleading information, a direct act of deception.
• Withholding Information: Deceptive omission of crucial details that others reasonably expect to know.
• Deliberate Deception: Misleading others about expertise or product value, not always involving a direct lie.
• Failure to Seek Truth: Honest engineers actively seek truth, even if it's inconvenient.

Dishonesty in Research and Testing

• Falsification of Data: Altering data to remove irregularities or present only favorable results, which can involve excluding relevant data. It can also entail misrepresentation of results.
• Fabrication of Data: Creating or reporting non-existent experimental data or results. A serious ethical violation with potential harm.
• Plagiarism: Appropriating someone else's work without permission or credit. It is a form of theft that undermines intellectual property integrity.

Protecting Intellectual Property

• Trade Secrets: Confidential formulas, patterns, or information used to gain competitive advantage.
• Trademarks: Words, phrases, or symbols that identify and distinguish goods/services.
• Patents: Government-granted rights to use, make, and sell an invention for a specified period.
• Copyrights: Protection of original expressions of creative works like books, music, and software.

Confidentiality in Engineering

• Client Confidentiality: Engineers have an obligation to safeguard sensitive client information shared or discovered during work.
• Public Safety vs. Confidentiality: When public safety is at risk, the obligation to protect the public may override client confidentiality.
• Line-Drawing Method: A method to determine boundaries between permissible and impermissible actions in complex confidentiality situations.

Defining Whistle-Blowing

• Employee/Former Employee: A whistleblower is an employee or former worker revealing information.
• Information Conveyed: The whistleblower reports the moral problem to someone with authority.
• Significant Moral Problem: The reported issue relates to a significant moral problem that affects public safety, ethics, or legality.
• Outside Approved Channels: Whistleblower bypasses internal channels and resists pressure to remain silent.

Moral Guidelines for Whistle-Blowing

• Serious Harm: The potential harm must be significant and likely to occur.
• Internal Effort: The whistleblower must exhaust all reasonable internal channels first.
• Documentation: Whistleblower must support claims with credible evidence.
• Good Faith: The act should be motivated by a genuine concern for the public good.

Protecting Whistle-blowers

• Legal Protections: Government and (in some cases) private sector employees are protected from retaliation for reporting safety/environmental violations.
• Professional Support: Engineering associations/employee groups provide advice and legal assistance.
• Public Awareness: Raising awareness is crucial for creating a culture of accountability.

Beyond Whistle-blowing

• Open Communication: Fostering open communication channels and internal mechanisms to address ethical concerns.
• Ethics Review Committees: Independent ethics committees can investigate complaints and provide recommendations for resolving ethical issues.
• Professional Society Involvement: Engineers can seek confidential advisory support from professional society ethics committees.

This quiz covers Lecture 8 on Truth and Truthfulness from the Introduction to Engineering and Ethics course. It delves into the importance of trust and honesty in engineering, exploring ethical foundations, forms of dishonesty, and respect for individuals' moral agency. Evaluate your understanding of these crucial concepts in the engineering field.