Ethics Essay

Nicholas Stasi

4/30/2019

Ethics in the field of engineering is a very important part of the engineering

profession and it is important that we keep this in mind as we navigate our careers. The
IEEE code of ethics may be a clear and simple standard for electrical, computer, and
software engineers, however many real world situations may present us with some very
hard decisions. As ethical engineers, we must use a code of ethics to aid in our decision
making in order to make the best out of a potentially hairy situation. At the heart of being
an ethical engineer is having genuinely good morals and values that drive your
everyday life.

The purpose of having a “Code of Ethics” is to have a general set of standards or

rules that we, as engineers, can refer to when we are faced with difficult ethical
decisions. The IEEE code of ethics is spelled out broadly enough to apply to a wide
variety of situations, while being precise enough to still be helpful. Whether it comes to
design decisions, bribery, intellectual property, or several other aspects of the
engineering profession, this code of ethics is a constant reminder to act in a way that
will benefit both yourself and the larger community. I think the first code in the IEEE
code of ethics does a great job of summarizing what it means to be “ethical”. It reads “to
hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public, to strive to comply with
ethical design and sustainable development practices, and to disclose promptly factors
that might endanger the public or the environment;” Another way of saying this is to
constantly be prioritizing the wellbeing of everyone and to keep in mind how each
decision you make impacts other people.

When personally faced with an ethical situation, I make many conscious

decisions to do what I believe is ethical. Much like the engineering profession, acting
ethically means that we must think critically about the impact our decisions have, not
only on ourselves, but also on others such as our employers, our customers, our co-
workers etc. I personally try to analyse the situation in a pro vs. con fashion. The pros,
however, are not only positive outcomes associated with myself, but with the people I
work with and the people that my work impacts and the same goes for the cons. After
weighing the “pros” and “cons” that are associated with everyone the situation impacts I
choose whichever decision ends up with the most “pros” and least “cons”. However,
since I have considered the situation’s impact on all people involved (and not just
myself) it may end up that the most ethical decision seemingly requires me to sacrifice
something for the good of everyone involved. This is where ethical decision making can
get difficult, and that is why we have codes of ethics to help us.
Our ethical issue we discussed in class was the possible invention of “flying
taxis” created by Uber. Many of the ethical decisions that we discussed in our group
aligned with my understanding of ethics, however one topic we discussed had some
differing viewpoints. This was the idea that if we had flying taxis, only the wealthiest
among us would be able to use the new service and it would create a social class gap
between rich and poor. Some of the people in my group argued that this would create
tension between these two groups and it is something we should avoid. I argued that
this is not an issue that should hold us back from developing new and better ways of
transportation. I argue that the same argument could have been made back in the early
1900’s against the invention of the automobile. It may have been true that only the rich
were able to purchase an automobile at first, but as we have seen, as time goes on
more and more people will be able to afford this new technology as the cost of
production goes down. I believe the same applies to flying taxis as well. While we were
unable to come to a consensus on this issue, we were able to come to a consensus on
ethical issues such as air traffic control, vehicle security and so on.
For the case of flying taxis, I think the three virtues that stick out the most are
Responsibility, Honesty, and Integrity. Responsibility is relevant to this case study
because the manufacturers of the flying vehicle must be responsible if there is a defect
in their design. Especially with flying vehicles because if something goes wrong there
could be catastrophic consequences. Honesty is another relevant virtue to this case
study because if the makers of this vehicle have a potentially dangerous flaw in their
design, then being honest about their mistake is important in solving the problem.
Lastly, integrity is a relevant virtue to this case study because whoever brings this new
form of transportation to market must do so with integrity if they are to hold onto the
prestige that will come with being the first to market. If the makers of the first flying taxi
get exposed of acting unethically, they will lose all credibility. The other three virtues not
mentioned are also relevant to this case study, but the ones I mentioned stuck out to
me. While other virtues may apply to this case study specifically, I believe the virtue of
integrity can be used to sum up the general idea behind the others.