Engineering ethics: Outline of an aspirational approach

Abstract

Engineering has made an enormous contribution to providing the material well-being that promotes human flourishing. It can also be the cause of immense human suffering. The ethics of engineering is relatively unexplored compared to other professions such as medicine and business, but interest is undergoing a revival. Engineering Ethics: Outline of an Aspirational Approach aims to provide engineers with an inspiring view of the overall ethical direction of their profession in a way that has direct practical outcomes for their work practices. Key features of this original text include: Concern with the overall ethical direction of engineering rather than simply specific moral quandaries. The use of two key exemplars as a focus for the ethical issues: military engineering and water provision in developing countries. The relation of engineering ethics to medical ethics and business ethics. The development of an original and imaginative ethical analysis, providing a challenge to currently prevailing views. An original analysis that leads to specific suggestions for changes in engineering education, engineering institutions, industry practices and the public positioning of engineering, as well as suggesting an aspirational role for engineering in international political initiatives. Engineering Ethics: Outline of an Aspirational Approach will provoke debate among engineers, philosophers and the educated public. © 2009 Springer-Verlag London Limited.