Engineering Codes of Conduct

The terms “ethics” and “morality” are oftentimes interchangeable.  Ethics typically defines some sort of code with regard to rights and responsibilities to guide a person’s choices and behaviors towards a manner that is deemed “good” or “acceptable”.  As human beings with innumerable interests, backgrounds, needs, and desires, we develop moral codes based on subjective parameters, whether they be based in religion, government, family, or some other driving phenomenon or entity.

Engineering societies have well-defined codes of ethics that include many elements most reasonable persons can agree to -- treat others fairly, act with honesty in all circumstances, etc.  They are standards of behavior which development committees believe engineers should demonstrate to the public as they represent their profession in their work and also in their daily lives.  These codes, however, are not enforceable by law to the degree we have become familiar with for “errors and omissions” (tort law, for example), although a particular society may take action against a professional who exhibits unethical behavior through less stringent means, such as cancellation of membership or other penalties.  Many individual states include sections within their engineer licensing laws regarding ethical behavior, and punishment for violation will be felt more significant (loss of license), but the process involved in determining guilt is long and sometimes difficult with regard to evaluation of evidence, arriving at justifiable conclusions, and establishment of precedent.

One of the primary benefits to having codes of conduct (ethics, morality) provided to professional engineers by their societies or licensing agencies is they help us to cut through all competing sources of ethics and hone in on specifics that have been developed with the profession and society as a whole in mind.  The principles are focused on our practice, our rights, and our responsibilities through recognition as professionals.  It doesn’t matter what culture, gender, color, creed, preference, affiliation, religion, or status any of us have … it matters that we are all engineers, and we represent that profession in a manner that has been agreed to by our peers.  This is a benefit because all members of those societies are allowed to participate in the development of codes of conduct.  We all have a voice and have the opportunity to make a difference, either through direct participation in the development of these codes or simply by living them out every day.