Ethics
CS4310
Fall 2012
Updated 2/09
What is a Profession?
What is a Profession?
• Calling in which special knowledge and
skills are used in the service of mankind
• Elements (Greenwood 91)
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systematic theory
authority
community sanction
ethical codes
culture
Who is a professional?
Who is a professional?
• One who recognizes his/her obligations to
society by living up to accepted codes of
conduct
What is the purpose of
professional codes?
What is the purpose of
professional codes?
• Inspire, educate, guide, and discipline
members
• must be broad enough to cover ethical
conflicts, and specific enough to guide
professionals
Ethical Perspectives
• Professional Ethics
• Philosophical Ethics
• Descriptive Ethics
Professional Ethics
• The responsibility and obligation that affect
individuals as members of a profession
• Examples: medical ethics, legal ethics
Professional Ethics
• The responsibility and obligation that affect
individuals as members of a profession
• Examples: medical ethics, legal ethics
• Issues: professional responsibility, codes of
conduct, systems reliability/safety (e.g., for
engineers)
Professional Ethics
• The responsibility and obligation that affect
individuals as members of a profession
• Examples: medical ethics, legal ethics
• Issues: professional responsibility, codes of
conduct, systems reliability/safety (e.g., for
engineers)
• In this view, we want to restrict the discussion
to issues that are unique to the profession of
computing and technology
Philosophical Ethics
• The responsibility and obligation that affect
individuals as members of a society
• Issues: Intellectual property, privacy, free
speech, fairness
Philosophical Ethics
• The responsibility and obligation that affect
individuals as members of a society
• Issues: Intellectual property, privacy, free
speech, fairness
• Method:
– Identify moral problem or controversial practice
– Analyze the problem, clarify concepts, examine
facts
– Apply moral theories and principles to reach a
position about the issue
Descriptive Ethics
• Describe what is the case now
– Different from Normative: What ought to be
• How do members of a given group or culture
view a particular issue
– For example, copyrights.
• US and Chinese cultures view this differently
What is ethics?
• The science of conduct:
– science: rational inquiry to gain knowledge
– conduct: behavior when voluntary choice is
made because of belief that it right.
• Ethicists study how people ought to behave
• Moralists try to make people behave better
• (Many other definitions exist …)
Ethics vs Morals
• Moralist (Webster)
– one who leads a moral life
– one concerned with regulating the morals of others
• Ethicists
– One who studies morality using philosophical
perspectives
– Approaches are rational and open to others for
verification
Discussion Stoppers
• (a.k.a., “reasons” for not discussing ethics
or morals)
Problem: People disagree on
solutions to moral issues
Problem: People disagree on
solutions to moral issues
• But many experts disagree on key issues in
their fields. No need to stop the discussion.
• People do agree on many moral issues.
• Need to recognize that disagreements could
be about
– principles
– facts
– eg: stealing is wrong. Is copying over the
internet stealing?
Problem: Who am I to judge
others?
Problem: Who am I to judge
others?
• Need to distinguish between judging to
evaluate and judging to condemn
• We routinely evaluate people: who fixes
your car? who do you buy groceries from?
• Sometimes, we are morally obligated to
make judgments
– child abuse
– human rights abuse
Problem: Morality is a private
matter
Problem: Morality is a private
matter
• Morality is a public system
– if not, then it must be OK for me to steal from
you if I think it is OK for me to steal from you
• Don’t confuse moral choice with personal
preference
Problem: Morality is a matter for
individual cultures to decide
Problem: Morality is a matter for
individual cultures to decide
• Does it follow that a culture can devise any
moral scheme so long as the majority of
people in that culture approve?
– What if the majority says it’s OK to use
chemical weapons (or airplanes) to attack us?
Logical Arguments
Logical Arguments
• As ethicists, we must discuss unresolved
issues
• These discussions may be termed as
“arguments”
Logical Arguments
• Arguing is reason giving
• Reasons are justifications that support a
claim
• Rationality is the ability to engage in reason
giving (Zarefsky)
Effective Reasoning
• Concern is with audience:
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We are trying to engage the audience
We are trying to reach the best decision
Argumentation is a cooperative exercise
We have the shared goal of reaching best
decision
– Reasoning depends on the free assent of the
audience
Effective Reasoning
• Concern is with audience
• Success depends on the assent of a
particular audience
Effective Reasoning
• Concern is with audience
• Success depends on the assent of a
particular audience
• Argumentation takes place under
uncertainty
– We don’t argue about things that are certain
Effective Reasoning
• Concern is with audience
• Success depends on the assent of a
particular audience
• Argumentation takes place under
uncertainty
• Argumentation involves rational
justification for claims
Ethical Theories
Utilitarian Theory
• Utilitarian: the goodness of the consequence
determines the rightness of the action
• The greatest good for the greatest number
• Bentham, John Mills
Deontological Ethics
• Duty: (Kant) the goodness of the motives
determine the rightness of the action
– Each individual has the same moral worth,
regardless of wealth, intelligence, or
circumstance
– Each principle is universally binding, without
exception, for all human beings
– Categorical Imperative: Act only according to
that maxim whereby you can at the same time
will that it should become a universal law.
Hedonism
• Hedonism: the sole good in life is pleasure
Social Contract Theory (Hobbs)
• Legitimate authority must be derived from the
consent of the governed
• All members of a society are bound to respect a
sovereign will by the social contract
• We surrender some freedoms to a sovereign in
return for the benefits of the rule of law that
protect individuals from being harmed by others
Code of Ethics
Software Engineers
• Ought to uphold normal standards of
honesty and integrity
• Ought to uphold the law
• Ought to uphold the reputation of the
profession
• Not all standards of behavior are bounded
by law
Professional responsibility
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Confidentiality
Competence
Intellectual property rights
Computer misuse
Fairness
Professional responsibility
• Confidentiality
– Respect the confidentiality of employers
and clients with or without signed
agreement
• Competence
• Intellectual property rights
• Computer misuse
• Fairness
Professional responsibility
• Confidentiality
• Competence
– Engineers should not misrepresent their
level of competence
• Intellectual property rights
• Computer misuse
• Fairness
Professional responsibility
• Confidentiality
• Competence
• Intellectual property rights
– Engineers should be aware of laws
governing use of intellectual property and
protect the rights of employers, clients,
and other engineers
• Computer misuse
• Fairness
Professional responsibility
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Confidentiality
Competence
Intellectual property rights
Computer misuse
– Engineers should not use technical skills
to misuse computers belonging to others
(e.g. game playing at work or
dissemination of viruses)
• Fairness
Professional responsibility
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Confidentiality
Competence
Intellectual property rights
Computer misuse
• Fairness
– Engineers should strive to be fair towards each
other and towards the public. For example,
proper attribution in papers and code
Three levels of obligations
• Level 1: Humanity
• Level 2: Professionalism
• Level 3: Each Profession
Three levels of obligations
• Level 1: Humanity
– Integrity
– Justice
• Level 2: Professionalism
• Level 3: Each Profession
Three levels of obligations
• Level 1: Humanity
• Level 2: Professionalism
– Fairness, giving credit
• Level 3: Each Profession
Three levels of obligations
• Level 1: Humanity
• Level 2: Professionalism
• Level 3: Each Profession
– Understand specifications
– Ensure adequate testing
Software Engineering Code of
Ethics
• Purpose:
– A standard for practicing engineering
– Documents ethical and professional
responsibilities of software engineers
• Adopted by IEEE and ACM
• Developed by international task force
including industry, academics, military, and
government
Standard
• Describes ethical and professional
obligations against which peers, the public,
and legal bodies can measure a software
developer’s behavior.
Why our own code?
• Most professionals have profession-specific
codes of ethics.
• Professionals have great impact on the wellbeing of others.
• They have a higher standard of conduct than
non-professionals.
Eight Principles of Responsibility
1.
2.
3.
4.
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6.
7.
8.
Public
Client and employer
Product
Judgment
Management
Profession
Colleagues
Self
Public
• Software engineers shall act consistently
with the public interest.
Public
• What is the public interest?
• How do we know the public interest?
Client and employer
• Software engineers shall act in a manner
that is in the best interest of their clients and
employer, consistent with the public
interest.
Client and employer
• Software engineers shall act in a manner
that is in the best interest of their clients and
employer, consistent with the public
interest.
• What does that mean?
• What about making bombs?
– Ethical? Public interest?
Product
• Software engineers shall ensure that their
products and related modifications meet the
highest professional standards possible.
Product
• Software engineers shall ensure that their
products and related modifications meet the
highest professional standards possible.
• What are the professional standards? Does
that mean “zero defects”?
Judgment
• Software engineers shall maintain integrity
and independence in their professional
judgment.
Judgment
• Software engineers shall maintain integrity
and independence in their professional
judgment.
• If your boss comes in and says “we have to
ship the pacemakers next week, cut the
testing cycle.” what do you do?
Management
• Software engineering managers and leaders
shall subscribe to and promote an ethical
approach to the management of software
development and maintenance.
Management
• Software engineering managers and leaders
shall subscribe to and promote an ethical
approach to the management of software
development and maintenance.
• What implications does this have wrt
programmers working for you?
Profession
• Software engineers shall advance the
integrity and reputation of the profession
consistent with the public interest.
Profession
• Software engineers shall advance the
integrity and reputation of the profession
consistent with the public interest.
• What does integrity mean?
• What does reputation mean?
• Why do they matter?
Colleagues
• Software engineers shall be fair to and
supportive of their colleagues.
Colleagues
• Software engineers shall be fair to and
supportive of their colleagues.
• Give examples.
• Give counter examples.
Self
• Software engineers shall participate in
lifelong learning regarding the practice of
their profession and shall promote an ethical
approach to the practice of the profession.
Self
• Software engineers shall participate in
lifelong learning regarding the practice of
their profession and shall promote an ethical
approach to the practice of the profession.
• Give examples.
• Give counter examples.
Group Exercise
• Get into groups of 4. Each team member
takes two sections of the code.
– 1&2, 3&4, 5&6, 7&8
• Each team member will teach the rest of the
team about the sections they have.
• Teachers: get with other people teaching the
same section.
– You have 15 minutes to prepare
– You will have 5 minutes to teach