University of Warith Al-Anbiyaa

College of Engineering
Oil and Gas Engineering Department

Engineering Ethics
First Year Class
Lecture #3

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3. Professionalism and Codes of Ethics.

One of the crucial issues in professionalism is a genuine commitment to

ethical ideals, that must not be merely a smoke screen for getting the

public to trust professionals and impose only minimal regulation but also

realized in daily practice.

3.1. Models of Professionalism

There are two models of the professional that were used to understand

the importance of the ethical element in professionalism.

➢ Business Model

➢ Professional Model
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3.2.Codes of Ethics
Codes of ethics state the moral responsibilities of engineers as seen by the

profession and as represented by a professional society, such as National

Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE), American Society of

Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Institute of Electrical and Electronics

Engineers (IEEE), Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE). Because they

express the profession’s collective commitment to ethics, codes are

enormously important, not only in stressing engineers’ responsibilities

but also in supporting the freedom needed to meet them.

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3.3. How does a code of ethics achieve these goals?
❖ A code of ethics helps create an environment within a profession

where ethical behavior is the norm.

❖ Serves as a guide or reminder of how to act in specific situations.

❖ Bolster an individual’s position with regard to a certain activity.

❖ Provides a little backup for an individual who is being pressured by a

superior to behave unethically.

❖ Bolster the individual’s position by indicating that there is a collective

sense of correct behavior.

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❖ Code of ethics can indicate to others that the profession is seriously

concerned about responsible, professional conduct.

A code of ethics, should not be used as “window

dressing,” an attempt by an organization to appear

to be committed to ethical behavior when it really is

not.

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Examples

Codes of the Engineering Societies.

(1)National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) Code

of Ethics for Engineers
https://www.nspe.org/resources/ethics/code-ethics

(2) American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)

http://www.asce.org/inside/codeofethics.cfm

(3) American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

http://www.asme.org/NewsPublicPolicy/Ethics/Ethics_Center.cfm

(4) Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)

https://www.spe.org/en/about/professional-code-of-conduct/

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 3.4. What are Importance of Codes?
Codes of ethics play at least eight essential roles:

1. Serving and protecting the public.

2. Providing guidance.

3. Offering inspiration.

4. Establishing shared standards.

5. Supporting responsible professionals.

6. Contributing to education.

7. Deterring wrongdoing.

8. Strengthening a profession’s image.

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 3.5.What are limitations of Codes?
The codes are not remedy for all evils. They have many limitations, namely:

1. General and vague wordings. Many statements are general in nature

and hence unable to solve all problems.

2. Not applicable to all situations. Codes are not sacred, and need not
be accepted without criticism. Tolerance for criticisms of the codes
themselves should be allowed.

3. Often have internal conflicts. Many times, the priorities are clearly
spelt out, e.g., codes forbid public remarks critical of colleagues
(engineers), but they actually discovered a major bribery, which
might have caused a huge loss to the
exchequer. 8
4. They can not be treated as final moral authority for professional

conduct. Codes have flaws by commission and omission. There are still

some grey areas undefined by codes. They can not be equated to laws.

After all, even laws have loopholes and they invoke creativity in the

legal practitioners.

5. Only a few enroll as members in professional society and non-

members can not be compelled.

6. Even as members of the professional society, many are unaware of

the codes.

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7. Different societies have different codes. The codes can not be uniform

or the same. Unifying the codes may not necessarily solve

the problems prevailing various professions, but attempts

are still made towards these unified codes.

8. Codes are said to be coercive. They are sometimes claimed to be

threatening and forceful.

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 3.6. A Closer Look at Two Codes of Ethics.
IEEE NSPE
These codes have some common content; the structures of the codes
are very different.

✓ IEEE code is short and ✓ NSPE code is much

deals in generalities. longer and more
detailed.

✓ A short code that is lacking

✓ Has the advantage of
in detail is more likely to be
being more explicit and
read by members of the
is thus able to cover
society than is a longer
more ground.
code.
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✓ A short code is also more ✓ The length of the code
understandable. makes it less likely to be
read and thoroughly
understood by most
engineers.

✓ It articulates general principles ✓ It leaves less to the

and truly functions as a imagination of the
framework for ethical decision individual and therefore is
making. more useful for application
to specific cases.

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Q) Engineers should follow their professional Code of
Ethics because.

a) It helps them avoid legal problems, such as getting sued

b) It provides a clear definition of what the public has a
right to expect from responsible engineers
c) It raises the image of the profession and hence gets
engineers more pay
d) The public will trust engineers more once they know
engineers have a Code of Ethics

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Solution:
Choice b): The best and most relevant answer. The Code of
Ethics is designed to promote the public welfare,
and hence the public has a right to expect that
responsible engineers will follow each of its
provisions, as clearly defined by the Code.

Choice a): Avoiding legal problems is generally a good thing,

but it's not the most relevant reason why the
Code should be followed and in some cases,
strictly following the Code might make it more
likely that you'd get sued, e.g. by a disgruntled
contractor if you refuse to certify shoddy
workmanship.

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Choice c): Raising the image of the profession is a good thing,
but not for the reason of getting more pay; that
would be to act from self-interest rather than
ethical motivations.

Choice d): Increased public trust is generally a good thing,

but the mere knowledge that there is such a code
means little unless engineers actually follow it, and
for the right reasons.

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