Ethics in engineering practice and research /
Caroline Whitbeck.
- Cambridge, England ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1998.
- xx, 330 p. ; 24 cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 313-323) and index.
Introduction to ethical concepts : Values and value judgments -- Moral rights and moral rules -- Moral character and responsibility -- Privacy, confidentiality, intellectual property, and the law. Ethics as design : doing justice to ethical problems -- The basis and scope of professional responsibility -- Central professional responsibilities of engineers -- Two models of professional behavior : Roger Boisjoly and the Challenger, William LeMessurier's fifty-nine story crisis -- Workplace rights and responsibilities -- Responsibility for research integrity -- The responsibility of investigators for experimental subjects -- Responsibility for the environment -- Fair credit in research and publication -- Credit and intellectual property in engineering practice -- Epilog : Making a life in engineering and science.
Engineers encounter difficult ethical problems in their practice and in research. In many ways, these problems are like design problems: They are complex and often ill-defined; resolving them involves an iterative process of analysis and synthesis; and there can be more than one acceptable solution. This book offers a real-world, problem-centered approach to engineering ethics, using a rich collection of open-ended scenarios and case studies to develop skill in recognizing and addressing ethical issues.