Chapter 16
Engineering Ethics
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
16-1. Q: Which of the five categories of definitions ethicists have developed for “ethics” do you feel best
apply to your activities as an engineer?
16-2. Q: Obtain a copy of the code of ethics subscribed to by your engineering or other professional
society. How much of its content is clearly based on ethical principles? Of what does the rest
consist?
16-3. Q: Identify the most important real or potential ethical problems facing you in your present position
or one for which you are preparing. Select one and describe your position.
16-4. Q: Prepare a brief report on a specific case from the public print or your own experience on an
ethical problem faced by an engineer or engineering manager and how it was resolved.
16-5. Q: Describe the formal or informal code of ethical conduct established by your employer or by a
company with which you are familiar.
16-6. Q: Were the guidelines for Facilitating Solutions to Ethical Dilemmas in Professional Practice
followed in the Boeing case study?
16-7. Q: How could the Hyatt Regency Disaster have been prevented?
16-8. Q. Discuss one of the case narratives on the Case Study Websites.