A randomized trial of a lab-embedded discourse intervention to improve research ethics.

We report a randomized trial of a research ethics training intervention designed to enhance ethics communication in university science and engineering laboratories, focusing specifically on authorship and data management. The intervention is a project-based research ethics curriculum that was designed to enhance the ability of science and engineering research laboratory members to engage in reason giving and interpersonal communication necessary for ethical practice. The randomized trial was fielded in active faculty-led laboratories at two US research-intensive institutions. Here, we show that laboratory members perceived improvements in the quality of discourse on research ethics within their laboratories and enhanced awareness of the relevance and reasons for that discourse for their work as measured by a survey administered over 4 mo after the intervention. This training represents a paradigm shift compared with more typical module-based or classroom ethics instruction that is divorced from the everyday workflow and practices within laboratories and is designed to cultivate a campus culture of ethical science and engineering research in the very work settings where laboratory members interact

The Responsibilities of Engineers

Knowledge of the responsibilities of engineers is key to answering ethical questions about the work of engineers, because the decisions made by engineers often have ethical dimensions and implications. Engineers develop and implement technologies that influence and shape the way we live, at times in manners unanticipated by those who develop such technologies. To be able to answer important ethical questions, it is essential first to define what the responsibilities of engineers are. This paper defines the responsibilities of engineers by considering what constitutes the nature of engineering as a particular form of activity. Specifically, this paper focuses on the responsibilities of engineers qua engineers, where that refers to the duties acquired in virtue of being a member of a group. In order to answer this question, this paper examines the practice of engineering, drawing on the idea of practices developed by philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre and showing how the elements of a practice are important for finding and justifying the responsibilities of engineers. To demonstrate the contribution that knowledge of the responsibilities of engineers makes to engineering ethics, a case study is discussed at the end of the paper which deals with ethical questions in the discipline of structural engineering. The circumstances surrounding the failure of the Sleipner A platform off the coast of Norway in 1991 will be discussed to demonstrate how the responsibilities of engineers can be derived from knowledge of the nature of engineering and its context

Germ-Line Engineering: A Few European Voices

We have surveyed various recent European opinions on Germ-Line engineering. The majority express more or less severe reservations about any interventions on the human Germ-Line, including therapeutic ones. However, they are divided over the pragmatic, or categorical-ethical nature of the relevant arguments. This split reflects two competing views of technology. The ‘pessimistic' one is deeply concerned by the slippery slope leading from bona fide therapeutic applications of genetic engineering to eugenic practices. It insists that, if anything can defend us against these evils, it must be a set of strong, ethically-based prohibitions. The other, ‘optimist' view is more confident in the discriminating powers of societal regulation. We argue for the latter view and suggest that the pragmatic arguments brought to this debate are less problematic than the ethical one

An Introduction to the Integrated Community-Engaged Learning and Ethical Reflection Framework (I-CELER)

Cultivating ethical Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics researchers and practitioners requires movement beyond reducing ethical instruction to the rational exploration of moral quandaries via case studies and into the complexity of the ethical issues that students will encounter within their careers. We designed the Integrated Community-Engaged Learning and Ethical Reflection (I-CELER) framework as a means to promote the ethical becoming of future STEM practitioners. This paper provides a synthesis of and rationale for I-CELER for promoting ethical becoming based on scholarly literature from various social science fields, including social anthropology, moral development, and psychology. This paper proceeds in five parts. First, we introduce the state of the art of engineering ethics instruction; argue for the need of a lens that we describe as ethical becoming; and then detail the Specific Aims of the I-CELER approach. Second, we outline the three interrelated components of the project intervention. Third, we detail our convergent mixed methods research design, including its qualitative and quantitative counterparts. Fourth, we provide a brief description of what a course modified to the I-CELER approach might look like. Finally, we close by detailing the potential impact of this study in light of existing ethics education research within STEM

A Value-Sensitive Design Approach to Intelligent Agents

This chapter proposed a novel design methodology called Value-Sensitive Design and its potential application to the field of artificial intelligence research and design. It discusses the imperatives in adopting a design philosophy that embeds values into the design of artificial agents at the early stages of AI development. Because of the high risk stakes in the unmitigated design of artificial agents, this chapter proposes that even though VSD may turn out to be a less-than-optimal design methodology, it currently provides a framework that has the potential to embed stakeholder values and incorporate current design methods. The reader should begin to take away the importance of a proactive design approach to intelligent agents

Professional Ethics in the Construction Industry

The results are provided of a small, but reprersentative, questionnaire survey of typical project managers, architects and building contractors concerning their views and experiences on a range of ethical issues surrounding construction industry activities. Most (90%) subscribed to a professional Code of Ethics and many (45%) had an Ethical Code of Conduct in their employing organisations, with the majority (84%) considering good ethical practice to be an important organisational goal. 93% of the respondents agreed that "Business Ethics" should be driven or governed by "Personal Ethics", with 84% of respondents stating that a balance of both the requirements of the client and the impact on the public should be maintained. No respondents were aware of any cases of employers attempting to force their employees to initiate, or participate in, unethical conduct. Despite this, all the respondents had witnessed or experienced some degree of unethical conduct, in the form of unfair conduct (81%), negligence (67%), conflict of interest (48%), collusive tendering (44%), fraud (35%), confidentiality and propriety breach (32%), bribery (26%) and violation of environmental ethics (20%)

Preliminary Survey on Empirical Research Practices in Requirements Engineering

Context and Motivation:\ud Based on published output in the premium RE conferences and journals, we observe a growing body of research using both quantitative and qualitative research methods to help understand which RE technique, process or tool work better in which context. Also, more and more empirical studies in RE aim at comparing and evaluating alternative techniques that are solutions to common problems. However, until now there have been few meta studies of the current state of knowledge about common practices carried out by researchers and practitioners in empirical RE. Also, surprisingly little has been published on how RE researchers perceive the usefulness of these best practices.\ud \ud Objective:\ud The goal of our study is to improve our understanding of what empirical practices are performed by researchers and practitioners in RE, for the purpose of understanding the extent to which the research methods of empirical software engineering are adopted in the RE community.\ud \ud Method:\ud We surveyed the practices that participants of the REFSQ conference have been using in their empirical research projects. The survey was part of the REFSQ 2012 Empirical Track.\ud \ud Conclusions:\ud We found that there are 15 commonly used practices out of a set of 27. The study has two implications: first it presents a list of practices that are commonly used in the RE community, and a list of practices that still remain to be practiced. Researchers may now make an informed decision on how to extend the practices they use in producing and executing their research designs, so that their designs get better. Second, we found that senior researchers and PhD students do not always converge in their perceptions about the usefulness of research practices. Whether this is all right and whether something needs to be done in the face of this finding remains an open question

Ethical Marketing: A Look on the Bright Side

This article offers an alternative to conventional approaches to ethical analysis in business and marketing. We submit that studying companies with exemplary records of ethical conduct and social responsibility offers useful and compelling guidance to marketing students and managers. It provides another needed perspective beyond simply examining examples of misconduct or offering normative advice that may not reflect the specifics of corporate situations. Based on examples presented in a recent text by the authors and Better Business Bureau Torch Awardees, we present information on thirteen companies of varying size and from several different industries. That information includes ethics policies, management practices, environmental practices, and company reputation. From these examples, we draw lessons that should offer ethical guidance to marketing managers