i

Engineering Ethics:
The Moral Dimensions of Technology
reface
P
What is Engineering Ethics?
Ethics is one of the major disciplines of philosophy, along
with logic,* aesthetics, metaphysics, and epistemology.
Sometimes called moral philosophy, ethics addresses the
question of how individuals should live, and implies a didac-
tic genesis not typically associated with the word “moral.”
While the approaches to ethical deliberation have varied dras-
tically over time (e.g. we should consult the divine, we should
consult our own reason, we should consult our feelings, we
should consult the common use of our language) in the end,
proponents of moral philosophy try to defend their concep-
tion of human good and the special rules and practices that
such a human good might require.
Engineering ethics is the application of philosophy to the
moral dilemmas encountered by engineers, in their private
lives, but also in their professional practice—particularly in
their development and deployment of technology. As such,
engineering ethics has parallels in other professions, such
as business ethics in the field of management, or medical
ethics in the field of physiological research. Just as engi-
neering mechanics is a type of applied science having spe-
cial reference in engineering design, engineering ethics is a
type of applied philosophy having special reference in engi-
neering practice.
Engineering ethics must be understood within the aca-
demic context of moral philosophy, and against the larger
backdrop of philosophy as a whole. As might be expected,
moral philosophy has been greatly influenced by concurrent
perspectives in the allied philosophical disciplines. Not the
least of these influential perspectives was science (originally
called natural philosophy), which developed as the applica-
tion of empirical observation and speculative reasoning
*
Bold font is used to mark terms and expressions defined in the
appendix glossaries (discussed on page v and vi of this Preface).
i
ii Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

(induction and deduction) to the analysis of the physical

world. The scientific perspective has been so successful
dealing with the physical world that most ethicists,over the
past few centuries, have applied speculative reasoning to
their investigations of moral philosophy. Engineering ethics,
then, is a logical way of evaluating the moral component of
engineering practice.

Why is Ethics Important?

All engineering—all human endeavor—has a moral value.
If the moral component of engineering is systematically con-
sidered, grounded in ethical theory, engineering will be “bet-
ter”—just as engineering is better when the scientific com-
ponent of engineering is systematically considered, and
well-grounded in empirical theory.
In engineering science, many laws have already been
postulated by scientists like Newton, Galileo, and Ber-
noulli. As engineers, we don’t have to re-formulate the laws,
or re-trace the experiences (often serendipitous) that led to
the laws, in order to use them—we only need to under-
stand the laws well enough to know how and when they
should (and shouldn’t) be applied. It’s more or less the same
with ethics. Ethicists over the centuries have thought through
the kinds of ethical problems encountered by engineers.
Because ethicists developed their theories within the
philosophical perspectives of their day, there isn’t always
the kind of agreement between ethical theorists that exists
between engineering scientists. Of course, neither is there
broad agreement between scientists who formulate their
theories from different perspectives (e.g. Aristotelian,
Newtonian, or Relativisitic physics). However, while scien-
tific theories tend to be supplanted over time, ethical theo-
ries continue to inform our moral deliberations. Conse-
quently, engineers need a broad grounding in different ethi-
cal theories if they are to make a systematic analysis of
ethical problems. A grounding in ethical theory will identify
the kinds of prima facie obligations (compelling in them-
selves, yet over-ridable by other moral considerations) and
help to keep the engineer from overlooking possibly signifi-
cant solutions to ethical dilemmas.
Engineers tend to become absorbed in the engineering
of their projects. After all, most of their education and train-
ing focus on the computational aspects of their work. In
addition, the general problem-solving heuristic of breaking
Preface iii

large, incomprehensible problems into small, comprehensible

problems can obscure the “big picture.” This presents three
possible performance gaps for engineers. First, if engineers
lack an understanding of engineering ethics, they will be that
much more likely to ignore the ethical impact of their projects.
A good example of this might be found in the work of trans-
portation engineers from the 1950’s, such as Robert Moses
of New York, who planned or developed highways through
the middle of towns and established neighborhoods, effec-
tively cutting them in two.
Second, if pushed on ethical issues that seem unfamiliar
to them, engineers are likely to respond with some naïve vari-
ant of ethical relativism. For example, if San Francisco
wants to put a hydro-electric dam in the Hetch-Hetchy Valley,
then hydraulic engineers like Michael O’Shaughnessy might
feel justified in building the dam, assuming that their concep-
tion of the good for the valley was just as “good” as John
Muir’s, and that San Francisco should therefore be able to
build the dam—destroying what was an irreplacable national
treasure.
Finally, if engineers are troubled by an ethical dilemma,
but are unable to articulate their perspective, they will be
ignored as unconvincing. A good example of this is the
aeronautical engineer Roger Boisjoly, who became con-
cerned with the ethical problems of a cold-weather rocket
launch, but failed to adequately articulate that concern to
those who controlled the Challenger launch decision.
Engineers need to be able to recognize the ethical dilem-
mas that emerge from their work. Since engineers are some-
times unaware of such dilemmas, they need help recogniz-
ing potential problems, and they need to be encouraged to
stay with their ethical deliberations long enough to articulate
a meaningful resolution. They need to be able to analyze ethi-
cal dilemmas from a number of perspectives, and they need
to express their solution to ethical dilemmas within the rec-
ognized theory of western thought (at least with engineering
projects in the western world).

How Are the Chapters Organized?

I have organized the course materials to be modular and
adaptable to a variety of instructional settings.
„ The 12 chapters are grouped into three sections.
Part One: Finding Perfection deals with ethical theo-
ries, which are primarily teleological: pointing to
iv Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

some goal (virtue, harmony, cultural progress, or util-

ity). Part Two: Defining Obligations deals with ethical
theories, which are primarily deontological: pointing
to obligations (to autonomous individuals, to society,
to the suffering, or to those who might die as a result
of our work). Part Three: Making Decisions deals with
ethical theories, which are primarily constructivist:
pointing to modes by which engineering decisions
might obtain (from intuition, belief, discourse, or re-
flection).
„ The 12 chapters include most of what I consider fun-
damental to an engineer’s understanding of ethical
theory.
„ The chapters contain sufficient readings, and refer-
ence enough additional “suggested” readings to al-
low instruction to either collapse to a single semi-
nar, or class period (with maybe one or two short
readings) or expand to several weeks of instruction.
Each of the chapter includes:
„ The biographical sketch of a prominent engineer.
The intent here is to show the human face of engi-
neering—to relate these engineers to the ethical
problems they may (or should) have recognized and
considered. The 12 engineers represent a broad range
of engineering disciplines, and certain chapters may
be relevant as independent modules within standard
engineering courses (e.g., I have used chapter 1with
William Mulholland in the soil mechanics class I teach).
„ A re-statement of the ethical dilemmas encountered
in the context of the biographical sketch. This re-
states the ethical problems in terms that might make
their resolution easier to apply to other, more diver-
gent ethical problems.
„ The explanation of an ethical theory, perspective, or
consideration relevant to one of the developed di-
lemmas. While ethical problems might always be
approached from a variety of theoretical perspec-
tives, the intent here is to focus on a single approach
in each chapter.
„ A series of primary source readings that develop the
relevant ethical theory. Ethical theories are devel-
oped dynamically as ethicist reflect and interact with
other theorists. Sometimes the articulation of these
theories becomes poignant to the point where the writ-
Preface v

ings also have a literary content (for example, the apho-

risms of Heraclitus, Marcus Aurelius, or Nietzsche).
While some philosophical writing is turgid and nearly
unintelligible, or curt to the point of being cryptic, ethi-
cal theories are difficult to understand and appreciate
apart from the writings where they take form. To facili-
tate student interaction with ethical theory, four to ten
short, relevant (and relatively clear) readings have
been included in each chapter. While I’ve tried to use
more-or-less complete, self-contained selections,
some of the readings seemed to be a little long for the
tastes of some students. As a consequence, I have
tried to condense some of the longer selections to a
dozen or so pages.
„ A series of study questions follows the biographical
sketch, an explanation of the examined ethical
theory, and each of the reading selections. The in-
tent here is to encourage thought about the material
and give opportunities for the student to develop a
cognitive schema to organize the chapter content.
Study questions should be reviewed before, during,
and after an initial reading of the material they help
to organize. The study questions are also intended
to integrate the main components of each chapter,
with questions reflecting on the content of previous
sections, particularly with reference to the biographi-
cal sketch.
„ A suggested list of additional readings with special
relevance to the biographical sketch or theoretical
readings included in the chapter. The works that
contain these readings can be found in most univer-
sity libraries, and may be used to expand instruc-
tion, or simply as a starting point for students who
develop a particular interest in one ethical approach,
one theorist, or in the engineer being discussed.
While the suggested readings are important enough
to consider, they are generally excluded from the read-
ings because I consider them too peripheral, prolix,
or obscure.
Important but unfamiliar names, and frequently misunder-
stood terms and phrases have been marked in the text with a
bold font, and compiled in the appendix glossaries. The words
initially chosen for the glossaries were recommended by stu-
dents during the usability testing, and seemed, for the most
part, to fall into one of three categories
vi Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

„ philosophical terms, denoted in the text with bold font

and typically uncapitalized (e.g., logic)
„ foreign language terms, denoted with both bold and
italicized font (e.g., prima facie)
„ proper names (people and places), sometimes called
rigid designators, referring to specific people and
places, and denoted with bold font and, typically, with
leading capitals (e.g., Newton)
Because the readings contain so many references to people
and places, some discretion was exercised in selecting
those to be included in this glossary. The first criterion was
that the referents had to be reasonably discoverable. Au-
thors tend to use examples familiar to the audience of their
own day, and sometimes (given the fleeting nature of fame)
their references are simply lost on us. Consequently I have
only included people or places that I could identify through
a cursory examination of the Internet, and the few refer-
ence books at my disposal. The second criterion was that
there had to be relevant information about the referent, of
which the reader might reasonably be unaware. I tried to
err somewhat on the side of liberality, particularly if I thought
the reader might benefit from minimal biographical infor-
mation (to place the individual in a temporal context). How-
ever, I had to draw the line somewhere, so I have not in-
cluded culturally iconic figures, such as “Christ.” Finally, I
have not included people or places that were referenced
only once or twice, which referents seemed to add little to
an understanding of the associated text.
Additionally, students identified some less commonly
used English language terms (e.g., the term didactic, used
on the first page of this Preface) for which a glossary might
be helpful. I initially highlighted these terms with a bold font
and compiled them into end-of-chapter glossaries. How-
ever, to minimize confusion with philosophical terms (found
only in the appendix glossaries) I decided to eliminate the
marking of these terms in the text, and have perhaps been
a little generous including some of these terms, with per-
haps only a smattering of philosophical relevance, in the
appendix glossary of philosophical terms. Although these
less-common English language terms are not highlighted
in the text, I have retained the end-of-chapter glossaries,
which might be used as a vocabulary aid. While I agonized
over these decisions, I suppose the bottom line is that I
feel college students, and other serious readers, should
Preface vii

develop the habit of using a dictionary as they read (I cer-

tainly have to do so myself).
As a final comment on the glossaries, many of the
names, terms, and phrases appear at multiple locations in
the text. Where this is the case, they are highlighted only at
the first instance of their occurrence in each chapter.

Note to Instructors
Our students will only care about ethics if we give it a rea-
sonably prominent place in the curriculum. This isn’t going
to happen if ethics is dealt with as an ancillary part of a
one-hour seminar (often viewed by students as a throw-
away). Engineering ethics needs to be incorporated in the
curriculum, rather than simply grafted on. If it is a regular 3-
credit-hour course, students will at least see that the fac-
ulty considers it a worthy part of the curriculum. However, if
we can integrate ethics into the majority of required engi-
neering classes, then ethics might be seen to have a kind
of pervasive, universal significance.
The engineer’s ethical deliberations need to become a
meaningful, recognized part of his or her work. Teaching
engineers to expend energy on ethical considerations is
not as easy as teaching them to make calculations, or even
teaching them how to design. Engineering ethics has to be
taught in the affective as well as the cognitive domains—
teaching students to view engineering from other perspec-
tives, and giving them access to the common language
developed over three millennia of ethical thought. This, of
course, is just the beginning, and ethical engineering re-
quires management and industry support as well. However,
with more engineers trained in engineering ethics and able
to articulate their beliefs and concerns, ethical dilemmas
will become apparent much earlier in the engineering pro-
cess, and will be both easier to resolve and much more
difficult to ignore.

Goals and Objectives

The text objectives are meant to support the text goals
„ to give students a sense of engineering as a human
pursuit;
„ to give them the ability to articulate their developing
ethical perspective in terms of the western standards
of ethical thought.
viii Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

Any objectives that purport to meet these goals must in-

clude both the cognitive and affective domains of learning. In
addition, for the study of ethics to be meaningful, students
and instructors must have the freedom to explore relevant
yet unanticipated topics—leading to unexpected but fruitful
learning. Consequently, I propose both behavioral and ex-
pressive objects for the text as a whole. These objectives
apply to all the chapters, generally, and do not reference spe-
cific learning behaviors anticipated for the individual chap-
ters.
Behavioral Course Objectives. By the end of each chap-
ter, the student will be able to
„ describe (either orally or in writing) the environment
in which the ethical dilemma developed. This will
include relevant biographical facts concerning the
engineer examined, and his or her response to the
dilemma;
„ describe how a similar dilemma might develop in an
unrelated engineering discipline;
„ describe the theory developed in the chapter as a
possible response to the ethical dilemma;
„ evaluate the objections that might be raised if the
developed theory were applied to the dilemma;
„ apply the developed theory to an ethical dilemma
that might occur in an unrelated discipline.
Expressive Course Objectives. By the end of each chap-
ter, the student will have had the opportunity to

„ explore additional readings in ethics theory that

seem interesting;
„ reflect on his or her own feelings about how the en-
gineer responded to the ethical dilemma;
„ reflect on the general appropriateness of the ethical
theories considered;
„ imagine the ethical dilemmas discussed in the chap-
ter as something experienced personally, rather than
in the “third” person—both as one who has control
over the eventual outcomes, and one who does not.

How Is Ethics Taught to Engineers?

Engineering ethics enters the curriculum in a variety of ways:
Preface ix

„ As dedicated seminars, or stand-alone courses (some

programs require more than one course).
„ As individual modules of instruction integrated within
existing courses.
„ As components within a required course on engi-
neering practice, introduction to engineering, or se-
nior design.
„ As a general education course in ethics taken from
the philosophy department.
„ As a course in applied ethics shared with other pro-
fessional programs such as medicine, law, and busi-
ness.
The methods of engineering ethics instruction fall into
one or more of five basic categories:
„ Examining codes of ethical conduct.
„ Reading humanist literature.
„ Examining case studies of ethical dilemmas in engi-
neering.
„ Learning through service projects.
„ Reading and discussing theoretical ethics.
A discussion of the various codes of ethical conduct
developed by engineering societies should be a part of in-
struction in engineering practice, but by itself, codes of con-
duct are an inadequate preparation for moral deliberation.
Service learning and humanist readings can open students
to a larger worldview and help them to see the need for
ethical deliberations. The study of cases involving ethical
dilemmas in engineering helps to provide context for the
discussion of engineering ethics, but ethical deliberations
can only be systematically advanced through an under-
standing of ethical theory.
The materials in this text were designed to be used as
independent units in individual seminars or as integrated
components within broader courses. Taken as a whole, the
12 chapters should provide an adequate grounding in theo-
retical ethics. Some of the elements considered in the chap-
ters might be encountered in a general education course
taught within your philosophy department, but your students
would probably not be exposed to more current ethicists
(particularly those of chapters 7 through 12). Engineering
programs that require students to take a philosophy course
x Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

in ethics might concentrate on the chapters and readings that

are less likely to have been encountered by their students,
but theoretical ethics, like everything, is learned through re-
peated exposure. By re-examining ethics in the context of
dilemmas in engineeiring, students will broaden their schema
for theoretical ethics.

How to Use the Materials

The individual chapters are independent of one another,
but do make reference to each other in the sense of in-
forming the student as to what complementary material
might be available in other chapters. The chapters are
grouped in three basic sections (exploring theories which
are generally teleological, deontological, or constructivist).
Consequently, you might assign chapters randomly or se-
quentially without a significant loss in effectiveness.
Other things being equal (ceteris paribus), Chapter 1,
Engineering and the Good, might be an appropriate place
to begin instruction. Chapter 4 discusses various aspects
of utilitarianism, one of the most prevalent theories of ap-
plied ethics. Chapter 5 contains some readings from Kant,
which dominated ethical thought for at least a century. Chap-
ter 12, Ethical Reflection, should probably be encountered
after the students have developed an appropriately broad
theoretical background, at least chapters 1, 4, 5, 6, and 9.
Each of the main components of each chapter (bio-
graphical sketch, theoretical background, and the selected
readings) has its own study questions. While the study ques-
tions for the selected readings occasionally refer back to
content developed in the biographical sketch and theoreti-
cal background sections, study questions from the reading
selections seldom refer to other readings, and you might
make assignments from the selected readings to meet in-
dividual course objectives.
Study questions should be assigned to help students
process the chapter content. Not all of the questions need
to be assigned, but assigned questions might function as a
logical starting point for classroom discussion. Classroom
discussion, or its asynchronous equivalent using threaded
discussion, is an important opportunity for students to ask
relevant questions concerning the theory, to see how their
peers feel about the theory, and to deepen their apprecia-
tion for how the theory might be applied to different prob-
lems in engineering ethics. Classroom discussion would
also be an important opportunity to expand on the material
Preface xi

with case studies based on related dilemmas encountered

in engineering practice.

How Do I Use the Text?

I began developing these text materials as independent
modules, and used them over 4 to 6 class periods at mid-
semester in the required engineering courses that I teach
(Statics, Strength of Materials, Soil Mechanics, Structural
Analysis, and Reinforced Concrete Design), where they
functioned as something of a break from the more typical,
computationally intense course content. In this format, the
modules worked best just before and/or just after the mid
semester holidays (Spring Break, or Thanksgiving). Typi-
cally I would spend one day discussing the engineer’s life
and accomplishments, supplemented with relevant video
where available; a day discussing the ethical dilemma, and
generally providing theoretical background; and a day with
each of the primary source readings (I’d usually cover 3 or
4). I’d have the students write formal answers to a given
percentage of the study questions (they could select the
ones they wanted to answer) and would grade them based
on their answers, and their participation in the classroom
discussions.
Some students considered the ethics module an un-
warranted intrusion into the engineering science curricula,
so when I had developed one module for each of my requi-
site courses, and when I had an opportunity to develop a
university core class (that could be required of engineering
students, without adding three credit hours to the degree
requirements), the move to a stand-alone course seemed
logical. There is significantly more material in the twelve
chapters than can be covered in a single semester, so I
currently limit the reading assignments to two or three se-
lections from each chapter (in addition to the biographical
sketch and theoretical background sections), and plan to
introduce some of the uncovered materials as an upper
division engineering elective (with the core course as a pre-
requisite).
At the time that I developed this course in engineering
ethics, I was also teaching a general education course that
I had created for non-engineers—dealing with ethics over
a two-week period at the end of the semester. Here, I be-
gan to realize how much it would enhance the learning ex-
perience, if I could establish a discourse between engineer-
xii Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

ing and non-engineering students. By being accepted as a

core class open to all undergraduates, the course attracts
a broad spectrum of students: engineering students, stu-
dents from other technology disciplines (particularly busi-
ness and nursing) with an interest in applied ethics, and
students from the more traditional academic disciplines. I
am hopeful that the interchange of ideas and perspectives
will prove empowering for everyone.

Why Am I Teaching Engineering Ethics?

I began looking at ways to address engineering ethics
through existing courses, and the natural solution (at the
university where I teach) seemed to be the course in ethics
taught by our Philosophy Department. Unfortunately, this
course wasn’t on the list of acceptable university core
classes (Introduction to Philosophy and Logic were the only
classes offered by this department and approved for the
university core). Additionally, the Philosophy Department
expressed minimal interest in qualifying their ethics course
for general education (they certainly contribute more than
their share to the quality of our university core).
Then, with classroom experience exploring the ethics ma-
terials I had developed, I began to realize the importance (both
personally, and for my students) of organizing and presenting
the course content myself. First, having the course taught by
someone from the “regular” engineering faculty gives addi-
tional credence to the subject matter—it presents content that
at least someone on the engineering faculty considers im-
portant enough to invest his own time. Second, because I am
an engineer rather than a philosopher, I approach engineer-
ing ethics as a novice rather than an expert. While I have
gained some familiarity with ethics theory, my perspective is
still primarily fundamental rather than esoteric. My “intrusion”
into the field of applied ethics might be construed as intellec-
tual imperialism (by some of my university colleagues), but I
believe that my novice approach makes ethics more acces-
sible for my students—both in the way I present content, and
in any value that might accrue from my being a credible peer
model.
However, there is a danger in my editing the primary read-
ings, which exacerbates the learning problem I created by
compiling my reading selections in the first place. While the
virtue of my approach is that I have a novice understanding of
the content, my novice understanding was gleaned over sev-
eral years, reading entire works (whole books as a complete
Preface xiii

unity, for the most part; but sometimes the complete works of
important philosophers). The readings are set up as a survey
of ethical thought, already cut as extractions from the context
of more complete works, and crammed into a much shorter
time frame. To further edit the readings (as I have done with
red font) threatens to make them still more remote from the
novice perspective they address. Hopefully we will all realize
this, and recognize that students should use the course and
text to begin their exploration of ethical thought—certainly not
with the expectation that they complete such an important
study within the time required to read the extractions from
primary source materials provided in the text.
Finally, I found ethics to be an area of my own education
that was sadly wanting. I do have degrees outside engineer-
ing, but when I began to consider teaching engineering eth-
ics, I realized that I had never taken a class in philosophy—
and had only a limited exposure to philosophic writings (pri-
marily in educational philosophy). Philosophy—like an ap-
preciation for literature, music, and art—can add an essen-
tial texture to our lives. Admittedly, this becomes more impor-
tant as we grow older. While the problems of engineering are
fascinating, they do not comprise the totality of human excel-
lence, and to concentrate solely on engineering (or on any of
the other technology disciplines) is to pursue an incomplete
life.

Note to Students
There is a recurring theme in the films of Laurel and Hardy
(maybe a running gag in all slapstick) where Oliver is stand-
ing at a curb—about to cross over to the other side of the
road—barely cognizant of the seemingly shallow puddle at
his feet. It’s funny because the audience knows that Oliver
is about to step into the puddle and disappear into water
over his head. In a variation from their 1937 film Way Out
West (Figure P.1), Stan and Oliver are gallantly leading the
ingénue across a “shallow” expanse, moments before Oliver
slips beneath the placid surface.
Ethics is a little like the nemesis of Oliver’s pride, the
deceptively shallow puddle. We can go through much of
our lives barely aware that it exists. At the surface, ethics
appears to be some shallow collection of “isms” (what Hegel
would call the dead bones of philosophy). But when you need
to cross the road—to go from where you are to where you
need to be through the benefit of social cooperation—ethics
is lying there at your feet. If you try to walk across the “sur-
xiv Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

Figure P. 1: Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy leading Rosina Lawrence across a deceptively placid pond
in their 1937 film Way Out West.

face” of ethics, like Oliver, you’ll find yourself sinking to some

unknown depth. Then, you have to lunge back to the curb,
swim across the surface of the puddle, or feel for the bottom
and find your footing.
Finding your footing in ethics is to understand ethics
beyond the surface—to understand the isms of the sur-
face, the theories beneath the isms, but also the meta-eth-
ics—the foundation for all ethical theories. You can’t find
the foundation—the meta-ethics—without penetrating the
surface, immersing yourself in the various theories, and
discovering the motivation behind it all. This truly requires
a lifelong effort, but we can begin the process with adequate
courses in engineering ethics.
The idea of taking a course in engineering ethics may
be a little new to you. This note will answer a few questions
that you might have, and will then give you some hints about
how to use the text materials, and how to approach the
study questions.

Frequently Asked Questions

„ Why do you need to take a class on engineering eth-
ics?
Preface xv

The short answer is that the accrediting agency for

engineering programs (the Accrediting Board for En-
gineering and Technology, or ABET) requires engi-
neering programs to include instruction in engineer-
ing ethics as a major program goal. Under the ABET
2000 criteria, all accredited engineering programs
in the United States are now required to include engi-
neering ethics in their curriculum.
„ How does engineering ethics fit in with your other
studies (both engineering and general studies)?
Many engineering professors loosely lump engineer-
ing ethics with other “soft skills” such as writing,
making presentations, and working in teams. In a
sense, the current emphasis on engineering ethics
is part of a larger dynamic, as engineering programs
adjust to the needs of industry, trying to find the right
balance between the science that is important in en-
gineering research, the design that is important in
engineering consultation, and the soft skills that are
important if engineers are to work effectively with
others (both engineers and non-engineers). If you’ve
had a philosophy course in ethics, you may already
have some exposure to the ethical theory developed
in chapters 1 through 6. If you have only had a single
philosophy course in ethics, you will probably be un-
familiar with much of the theory developed in the
remaining chapters.
„ What do you need to do to successfully complete a
course in engineering ethics?
Study questions follow the biographical sketch, the
section explaining relevant ethical theory, and each
of the selected readings. (In the following section, I
present a sample answer to the third study question
that accompanies the Untimely Meditations reading
from chapter 3, on page 249.) Read through the
study questions before you begin the accompany-
ing content, and use them to help focus on the ma-
terial. Relatively wide margins have been left in the
text, so take advantage of them to make notes and
cross-references. Bold terms are included in the
appendix , with some less-familiar vocabulary com-
piled at the end of each chapter. Use the glossaries,
which define terms that you might find confusing. If
you’re struggling with a word that isn’t in bold type, or
in the end-of-chapter list, look it up in a dictionary.
xvi Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

Think about how you might apply the ethical theory to

other dilemmas you’ve heard about, or perhaps per-
sonally encountered in engineering, education, or in
your life generally. And participate in the class discus-
sions (you will probably never encounter anyone in en-
gineering who is also an expert in ethical theory, and
your considered opinions are as important as
anyone’s).
Of course, instructors all have their own standards, and
a course in engineering ethics is no different. But don’t
assume that because the course has no computational
content, it can be ignored or limited to the chinks of
time not consumed by your other engineering courses.
Engineering ethics instruction requires the same sys-
tematic approach you should be using in all your stud-
ies:
• Devote a specific time for reading and answering
study questions.
• Make notes on the things that you don’t understand,
and ask questions.
• Make notes on the things you do understand, and
find someone that you can explain it to (teaching
and learning are symbiotic and self reinforcing).
• Come to class prepared.
„ How will you be different after reading this text?
For one thing, you should be better able to recog-
nize the kinds of ethical dilemmas that often occur
in engineering practice. No one is perfect, but it’s
often difficult to see problems if you aren’t looking
for them. This text should help you to become more
aware of how others (both engineers and non-engi-
neers) view the ethical dilemmas associated with en-
gineering decisions and projects. The text should
also give you a familiarity with the kinds of dilem-
mas encountered by the engineers you will read
about in the biographical sketches.
After reading this text, you will also be better
equipped in your personal deliberations concerning
ethical dilemmas you might encounter in engineer-
ing practice. You should be able to recognize that
ethical dilemmas can be approached from a variety
of theoretical perspectives, and that all theoretical
Preface xvii

perspectives are not equally valid with all ethical di-

lemmas. Your job in an ethical deliberation is to sort
out more relevant from less relevant views of the
problem, and to make sure that potentially relevant
theories aren’t being ignored. You must have a cer-
tain familiarity with ethical theories before you can
make these kinds of judgments.
After reading the text, you should also be able to
explain your personal resolution of ethical dilemmas
in terms of the theories that have been recognized
as potentially valid. While personal opinions are im-
portant, and should carry some weight, so are the
opinions of experts. The ethical theories developed
in the readings have withstood a fair amount of scru-
tiny, and should reinforce the validity of your ethical
deliberations and conclusions. Articulation is a fun-
damental aspect of being human. When we articulate
an engineering solution, we need to do it in the funda-
mental language of engineering. The ethical theories
developed in this text are fundamental components of
the language of ethics, and need to be referenced in
our ethical resolutions.

Sample Answer to a Study Question

To help you understand chapter content, the biographical
sketch, the section on theoretical background, and each of
the reading selections is followed by a series of study ques-
tions. Some of these questions can be answered briefly in
a sentence or two, while others need more thought and
may require a few paragraphs. As you answer the study
questions, try to synthesize your understanding by integrat-
ing other material from earlier sections of the chapter into
your response. As an example, I have supplied a possible
short answer for the third study question on page 249, fol-
lowing the selection from Nietzsche’s Untimely Meditation.
This answer to the study questions is as long as any needs
to be, but your answer might be a little longer if you care to
integrate more material into your response.

3. What does Nietzsche mean by “your knowledge does

not perfect nature, it only destroys your own nature”?

When we have to accomplish a difficult and unfa-

miliar task, most of us need to visualize ourselves
xviii Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

being successful at the task. Without a belief in the likeli-

hood of success, we simply lack the motivation to expend
the extraordinary effort that a truly difficult task requires.
This is why some threshold levels of performance in sports
appeared “unbreakable,” like the four-minute mile. Then,
when someone (Roger Bannister, in the case of the four-
minute mile) achieves a breakthrough, others with the po-
tential to duplicate the breakthrough will realize that it is
possible, find the motivation (from what psychologists call
“peer modeling”) to make an adequate effort, and dupli-
cate the achievement.

Nietzsche is saying that when a culture has a historicized

view of itself—if it believes that society has already nec-
essarily achieved its ultimate potential—then that society
sees itself at an unbreakable threshold and will not be
motivated to achieve any real potential it might have to
become even better. Nietzsche is saying that such a
historicized view—such “knowledge”—doesn’t perfect
“nature,” or help us to achieve our potential, but actually
destroys our nature. For Nietzsche, our nature is our po-
tential to become something better than we are: what he
later comes to call the “overman.” Therefore, by destroy-
ing our will to achieve greater things, we are destroying
our own nature.

Conclusions
Those few engineering students who are currently exposed to
theoretical ethics are usually given simple descriptions of the
perspectives applied by Mill and Kant. By itself, this is inad-
equate. Engineering students need to understand both “act” and
“rule” utilitarianism (chapter 4). They need to understand the dif-
ference between ethics based on duty to the individual (chapter
5) and duty to society (chapter 6). They need to understand per-
fectionism, both “virtue” ethics (chapter 1) and cultural perfec-
tionism (chapter 3). They need to understand the special condi-
tions that apply to engineering projects which threaten life (chap-
ter 8).They need to understand how we might come to have intu-
itional feelings about our ethical obligations (chapter 9) and how
our beliefs, both rational and intuitional (chapter 10) develop and
tend to affect our ethical resolutions.They need to understand
stoicism (chapter 2) versus the pleasure principle, and the eth-
ics of care versus obligations created by remote suffering (chapter
7). They need to understand the requirements for discourse be-
tween engineers and non-engineers (chapter 11) and the basis
 Preface xix

of ethics (meta-ethics) and legitimate ways that ethics can be

perceived as culturally relative (chapter 12).
Ethics has a critical role in the educational development of all
engineers. If ethics is neglected in the engineering curriculum,
then engineering education will have failed to produce compe-
tent engineers. Clearly, computational skills in the absence of
ethical understanding can foment disaster. The chapters in this
text offer a potential grounding in essential ethical theory.
xx Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

Table of Contents
Preface
What is Engineering Ethics? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i
Why is Ethics Important to Engineers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ii
How Are the Chapters Organized? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii
Note to Instructors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Goals and Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
How is Ethics Taught to Engineers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viii
How to Use the Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . x
How Do I Use the Text? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
Why and I Teaching Engineering Ethics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xii
Note to Students . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii
Frequently Asked Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiv
Sample Answer to Study Question . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvii
Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xviii
Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xix

Part One: Finding Perfection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Chapter1. Engineering and the Good: Virtue Ethics
William Mulholland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Ethical Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Readings
Plato: Republic I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Aristotle: Nicomachean Ethics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Epicurus: Principal Doctrines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
MacIntyre: The Nature of Virtues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Additional Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Chapter Vocabulary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Chapter 2. Engineering Harmony: The Stoic Will

Buckminster Fuller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Ethical Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Readings
Epicurus: Letter to Menoeceus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133
Epictetus: Enchiridion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Lucretius: De Rerum Natura . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
Aurelius: Meditations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Seneca: Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Table of Contents xxi

Katha Upanishad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

Additional Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Chapter Vocabulary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186

Chapter 3.Engineering Cultural Perfection

Walter Chrysler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Ethical Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
Readings
Hegel: World History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
Hegel: Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220
Marx: Capitalist Accumulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224
Marx: Communist Manifesto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
Marx: Alienated Labor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
Nietzsche: Untimely Meditations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Nietzsche: The Gay Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252
Nietzsche: Thus Spoke Zarathustra I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255
Nietzsche: The Will to Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264
Schweitzer: Civilization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Additional Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Chapter Vocabulary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

Chapter 4.Engineering the Useful: Utilitarianism

Lillian Gilbreth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283
Ethical Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298
Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
Readings
Benthan:Principles of Morals and Legislation . . . . . . . . 314
Mill: What Utilitarianism Is. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325
Spencer: Relativity of Pains and Pleasures . . . . . . . . . 340
Sidgwick: Method of Utilitarianism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 352
Hare: Universalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
Veblen: What Makes for a Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 375
Additional Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386
Chapter Vocabulary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387

Part Two: Defining Obligations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389

Chapter 5. Engineering Autonomy
Arthur Morgan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
Ethical Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415
Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 418
Readings
Kant: Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics . . . . . . . 428
 xxii Engineering Ethics: The Moral Dimensions of Technology

Kant: Critique of Pure Reason . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 438

Kant: Metaphysics of Morals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 448
Kant: Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals . . . . . . . 452
Kant: On the Incentives of Pure Practical Reason . . . . . 464
Morgan: TVA Code of Ethics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474
Additional Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481
Chapter Vocabulary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 482

Chapter 6. Engineering the Social Contract

Galileo Galilei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 483
Ethical Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516
Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 519
Readings
Plato: Crito . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534
Hobbes: Leviathan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 544
Locke: Of Property . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 558
Locke: Of the Beginning of Political Societies . . . . . . . . . . 569
Rousseau: The Social Contract . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 580
Kant: Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals . . . . . . . . . 592
Rawls: Social Unity and Primary Goods . . . . . . . . . . . . . 599
Additional Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 618
Chapter Vocabulary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 619

Chapter 7.The Engineer’s Obligation to Releive Suffering

Herbert Hoover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 621
Ethical Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 652
Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 657
Readings
Baier: Intention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 664
Foot: Transition to Human Beings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 676
Noddings: Caring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 688
Singer: All Animals are Equal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 704
Dalai Lama: Ethics and Suffering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 717
Additional Readings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 725
Chapter Vocabulary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 726

Chapter 8.The Engineer’s Obligation to Respect Life

Vannevar Bush . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 727
Ethical Dilemma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 744
Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 747
Readings
Sun Tzü: The Art of War . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752
Dao de jing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755
Cicero: De Republica. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 760
Augustine: De Civitate Dei . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 763