Honesty, Integrity, and Reliability

1. Honesty, Integrity, and Reliability The Truth, the Whole Truth, and nothing but the Truth…

2. Case Study John is a co-op student who has a summer job with Oil Exploration, Inc., a company that does exploratory contract work for large oil firms. The company drills, tests, and writes advisory reports to clients based on the test results. John is placed in charge of a field team who test-drill at various sites specified by the customer. John has the responsibility of transforming rough field data into succinct reports for the customer. Paul, an old high school friend of John’s, is the foreperson of John’s team.

3. Case Study While reviewing the field data for the last drilling report, John notices that a crucial step was omitted, one that would be impossible to correct without returning to the site as repeating the entire test at great expense to the company. The omitted step involved the foreperson’s adding a test chemical to the lubricant for the drill. The test is important because it provides the data for deciding whether the site is worth developing for natural gas protection. Unfortunately, Paul forgot to add the test chemical at the last drill site.

4. Case Study John knows that Paul is likely to lose his job if his mistake comes to light. Paul cannot afford to lose his job at a time when the oil business is slow and his wife is expecting. John learns from past company data files that the chemical additive indicates the presence of natural gas in approximately 1 percent of the tests. Should John withhold the information that the test for natural gas was not performed from his superiors? Should the information be withheld from the customer?

5. What do the codes say? • An engineer should be honest and realistic in stating claims… • An engineer should seek, accept, and offer honest criticism of technical work… • Engineers shall be objective and truthful in professional reports, statements or testimony… • Engineers shall issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner…

6. Forms of Dishonesty • Lying A lie is a statement believed to be false or seriously misleading, made with the intention to deceive • Deliberate Deception Implying knowledge that one doesn’t possess to impress Misrepresenting value by excessive praise, with no counterbalance of concerns

7. Forms of Dishonesty • Withholding Information Failing to convey information that the audience would reasonably expect Intending to deceive by withholding the information • Failure to Seek out the Truth The honest engineer is one who is committed to finding the truth, not simply avoiding dishonesty

8. Why is Dishonesty Wrong? • Respect for Persons Actions are wrong if they violate the moral agency of individuals Engineers should ensure that employers, clients, and the general public make decisions regarding technology with understanding, particularly the understanding of their consequences

9. Why is Dishonesty Wrong? • Utilitarian Actions should promote human happiness and well-being Engineers contribute by providing designs for the creation of things upon which society depends Dishonesty in our work undermines the public understanding and decision making processes

10. Dishonesty on Campus • Cheating on exams • Copying another’s work as one’s own • Misrepresenting data in reports and projects If you do this in school, why not do it in the workplace to get ahead?

11. Dishonesty in Engineering Research and Testing • Trimming • Cooking • Forging • Plagiarism

12. Original Data * Trimmed to line + Dishonesty in Engineering Research and Testing • Trimming Smoothing of irregularities to make the data look very accurate and precise * * + + Y * * + * + * X

13. Dishonesty in Engineering Research and Testing • Cooking Retaining only those results that fit the theory and discarding others * * Discarded data * * Y * * * * * * * * * * X

14. Dishonesty in Engineering Research and Testing • Forging Inventing some or all of the research data that are reported, and even reporting experiments to obtain those data that were never performed

15. Dishonesty in Engineering Research and Testing • Plagiarism Use of the intellectual property of others without proper permission or credit Written works Internet Multiple Authorship

16. Intellectual Property Property that results from mental labor Protection: Trade secrets - methods used in business to gain an advantage over competitors Patents - documents issued by the government excluding others from using for 20 years Trademarks - expressions associated with goods or services Copyrights - rights to creative products. Protect the expression of ideas, not the ideas themselves

17. Expert Witnessing To be a good expert witness: • Do not take the case if inadequate time to prepare • Testify honestly, without withholding information • Work with lawyer to acquaint with technical details and to prepare for cross-examination • Maintain an objective and unbiased demeanor • Remain open to new information

18. Confidentiality in Client-Professional Relations • Guard proprietary information • Do not abuse • Break confidentiality when not warranted • Not break confidentiality when the higher obligation to the public requires it

19. Informing the Public Professional Irresponsibility in handling technical information may be described as a failure to inform those whose decisions are impaired by the absence of the information This is a serious impairment of the public’s moral agency

20. Conflicts of Interest What is it? A conflict of interest exists for a professional if he or she is subject to “influence, loyalties, temptations, or other interests” that might make the professional’s judgment less likely to benefit the client or customer than he/she has a right to expect Critical to the reputation of the profession

21. Conflicts of Interest • Not just any conflict of interests, but related to the profession • Interests of the client or customer must be legitimate • 3 situations: • Actual • Potential • Apparent • Must always be disclosed

22. Honesty, Integrity, and Reliability The Truth, the Whole Truth, and nothing but the Truth…