Our original Engineering Ethics Toolkit case study, Facial recognition for access and monitoring, addresses the ethical issues of diversity, bias and privacy, and examines situations that professional engineers need to consider, such as informed consent, misuse of data, and conflicts with leadership.

This case involves an engineer hired to manage the development and installation of a facial recognition project at a building used by university students, businesses and the public. It incorporates a variety of components including law and policy, stakeholder and risk analysis, and both macro- and micro-ethical elements. This example is UK-based: however, the instructor can adapt the content to better fit the laws and regulations surrounding facial recognition technology in other countries, if this would be beneficial.

Now, as well as the activities within the original case study, we have provided an expansion on one of the activities in the form of a Case enhancement: Prompts to facilitate discussion activities.

We’ve provided this, and other case studies and case enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching. If you’re new to ethics, we have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here. You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

Do engineers have a responsibility to warn the public if there is a chance of risk?

This is one of the questions posed in our beginner level Engineering Ethics Toolkit case study, Glass safety in a heritage building conversion, which addresses the ethical issues of safety, communication, whistleblowing and power, with the aim of developing ethical awareness in learners.

This case concerns a construction engineer navigating multiple demands. The engineer must evaluate trade-offs between technical specifications, historical preservation, financial limitations, social needs, and safety. Some of these issues have obvious ethical dimensions, while others are ethically more ambiguous. In addition, the engineer must navigate a professional scenario in which different stakeholders try to influence the resolution of the dilemma.

Now, as well as the activities within the original case study, we have provided an expansion on one of the activities in the form of a Case enhancement, which asks learners to dig deeper into the ethical issues in the case through a debate.

We’ve provided this, and other case studies and case enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching. If you’re new to ethics, we have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here. You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

What are the environmental effects of textile production? Does an engineer have a responsibility to do anything about potential groundwater pollution from a project they are working on?

These are some of the questions posed in our Engineering Ethics Toolkit case study Industrial pollution from an ageing pipeline and its impact on local communities.

This case requires an engineer to balance multiple competing factors including economic pressure, environmental sustainability, and human health. It introduces the perspective of corporate social responsibility as a lens through which to view the dilemma. The engineer must also make decisions that will affect their professional success.

Now, as well as the activities within the original case study, we have provided an expansion on one of the activities in the form of a Case enhancement, with which an educator can facilitate a class discussion about relevant issues.

We’ve provided this, and other case studies and case enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching. If you’re new to ethics, we have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here. You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

How important is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) in Construction?

This is one of the questions posed in our intermediate level Engineering Ethics Toolkit case study, Implementing the use of homegrown mass timber for residential housing, which addresses the ethical issues of sustainability, respect for the environment, future generations, societal impact and CSR, with the educational aim of practising ethical analysis.

This case study involves an early-career consultant engineer working in the area of sustainable construction. She must negotiate between the values that she, her employer, and her client hold in order to balance sustainability goals and profit.

We’ve provided this, and other case studies and case enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching. If you’re new to ethics, we have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here. You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

Could the shift of food production from soil to chemical industries concentrate power in the hands of a few? What public perceptions or cultural values might impact the acceptance or uptake of this technology?

These are some of the questions posed in our advanced level Engineering Ethics Toolkit case study, Power-to-food technologies, which addresses the ethical issues of sustainability and social responsibility, and examines situations that professional engineers need to consider, such as public health and safety, reputation, falsifying data, and communication, with the educational aim of practising ethical reasoning.

Now, as well as the activities within the original case study, we have provided an expansion on one of the activities in the form of a Case enhancement, which asks learners for a deeper ethical evaluation of the technology and its impacts.

We’ve provided this, and other case studies and case enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching. If you’re new to ethics, we have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here. You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

 

 

“Engineering can have a significant impact on society and the environment, in both positive and negative ways. To fully understand the implications of engineering requires navigating complex, uncertain and challenging ethical issues. It is therefore essential to embed ethics into any project or learning outcome and for engineering professionals and educators to operate in a responsible and ethical manner.”

Our Engineering Ethics Toolkit guidance article Pedagogical approaches to integrating ethics in engineering raises issues for educators to consider when translating accreditation learning outcomes and their intentions to an engineering programme.

This article should be read by educators at all levels in higher education who wish to integrate ethics into the engineering and design curriculum, or into module design and learning activities.

We have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you as you expand your understanding of engineering ethics, and begin to embed it within the curriculum, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to help you get started. We also have a library of case studies and enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here. You can also join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

What personal values will an engineer have to weigh in order to decide which job offer to accept? Which companies are doing the work that an engineer might feel is most ethically impactful? What wider impact does the work of a company have?

These are some of the questions posed in our beginner level Engineering Ethics Toolkit case study, Choosing a career in climate change geoengineering, which addresses the ethical issues of respect for the environment, social responsibility and risk, and examines situations that professional engineers need to consider, such as public health and safety, and communication.

This case study involves a dilemma that most engineering students will have to face at least once in their careers: which job offer to accept. It allows students to consider how personal values affect professional decisions.

We’ve provided this, and other case studies and case enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching. If you’re new to ethics, we have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here.

You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

 

“The Statement of Ethical Principles published by the Engineering Council and the Royal Academy of Engineering contains the recommendations to which all UK engineers should comply. These principles are based on the premise that engineering professionals work to enhance the wellbeing of society, and in so doing they are required to maintain and promote high ethical standards, as well as to challenge unethical behaviour. The principles are the foundation for making decisions when faced with an ethical dilemma in engineering.”

Our Engineering Ethics Toolkit article Guidance for ethical decision-making rooted in research and practice explains what engineers need to consider when making an ethical decision.

This article should be read by educators at all levels in higher education who wish to integrate ethics into the engineering and design curriculum, or into module design and learning activities.

We have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you as you expand your understanding of engineering ethics, and begin to embed it within the curriculum, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started. We also have a library of case studies, for you to use and adapt in your teaching.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here. You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

You are the software engineer responsible for the integrity of the system in a community of smart homes. During a routine inspection you discover several indicators suggesting a data breach may have occurred via some of the smart appliances, many of which have cameras and are voice-activated. What do you do?

These is one of the questions posed in our intermediate level Engineering Ethics Toolkit case study Smart homes for older people with disabilities.

This case involves a software engineer who has discovered a potential data breach in a smart home community. The engineer must decide whether or not to report the breach, and then whether to alert and advise the residents. In doing so, considerations of the relevant legal, ethical, and professional responsibilities need to be weighed. The case also addresses communication in cases of uncertainty as well as macro-ethical concerns related to ubiquitous and interconnected digital technology.

We’ve provided this, and other case studies and case enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching. If you’re new to ethics, we have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started.

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here.

You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

Who should be responsible for the messaging and processes for public health decisions? How are engineers connected to this system? How did power, privilege, and politics influence the response to the Covid-19 vaccine rollout in the United Kingdom versus other countries?

These are some of the questions posed in our Engineering Ethics Toolkit case study Financially and politically motivated misinformation about STEM research,

The case involves an engineering student whose personal choices may affect her future professional experience. It highlights both micro- and macro-ethical issues, dealing with the ways that individual actions and decisions can scale to create systemic challenges, and offers several approaches to engaging students in the critique and improvement of their critical digital literacy skills.

We’ve provided this, and other case studies and case enhancements for you to use and adapt in your teaching. If you’re new to ethics, we have a growing library of guidance articles available to support you, and an interactive Ethics Explorer to get you started.

 

If you would like to give feedback on this or any other Engineering Ethics resource, or submit your own content, you can do so here.

You can join our Ethics Ambassadors community here.

Let us know what you think of our website