Professional Ethics

(1)

S. Adalarasu
arasutvl@gmail.com

Adjunct Professor,
VIT University, Vellore, Tamil Nadu
Formerly DGM,QIT,
Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre
Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
Occupation – Profession – Professional

Person’s Job
Commitment to a designated and organised occupation
Practitioner belonging to a specific profession

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A profession is also an occupation but the professional is paid for his particular
skills, and his deep knowledge.

But persons engaged in an occupation are not paid for their knowledge, but
only for what they produce.(Drivers, clerks and technicians fall under the category of
occupation)

1. A profession needs extensive training, specialized knowledge. Occupation

does not need any extensive training
2. Unlike person engaged in an occupation, a professional has to undergo
higher education
3. profession tends to be autonomous, whereas, for an occupation, the
person has no autonomous power; he is supervised by another person
4. Unlike occupation, a profession demands responsibility that lies with the
individual
5. A profession is guided through certain ethical codes, and regulated by
certain statute

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 “Professional ethics” - special morally permissible standards
of conduct that every member of a profession should follow
(e.g) medical ethics; business ethics; engineering ethics;
 Engineering ethics is a part of what engineers in particular
know(factors of safety, testing procedures, inspections, design or
construct for reliability and durability with economy)
 Therefore learning engineering ethics should be like as part of
learning engineering
Why it is important?
 to assure that personal actions do not harm anyone (including
self)
 personal actions contribute to the betterment of common
good
 to avoid the long list of tragedies, disasters, and scandals in
which engineers have been major players
Something should be done to avoid all these disasters
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What benefit for students ?
- being aware of the complex relationships between
technological development and social well being
- understanding the professional responsibilities of engineers
and the norms for exercising these responsibilities;
- having the capacity to make mature decisions about
professional responsibility and to deal with ethical dilemmas
when they arise

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Ethics ?
Moral philosophy: branch of philosophy Involves systamatizing,
defending and recommending concepts of right and
wrong conduct
Root word – Greek ethos
Examples of societal ethical behavior can include
Respect for another's property
Refraining from violence against another
Treating others with civility
Ethics guide an individual to take appropriate decision in a given
circumstances

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The usefulness of study on ethics are
 helps to know the people’s belief, values and morals
 learn good and bad of them
 practice them to maximize their well being and happiness
 involves the inquiry on existing situation, form judgments
and resolve the issues
 tells us how to live, to respond to issues, through duties,
rights, responsibilities and obligations Inimportance
ethics, value denotes the degree of
of some thing or action, with
the aim of determining what actions are
best to do or what way is best to live
(normative ethics), or to describe the
Ethics is important because significance of different actions

It plays a crucial role in shaping the individual’s behavior

within the society
It keeps human conduct in check to preserve the peace of
society
It helps to develop skills in articulating one’s own value to
prove others with reasons for his actions and give him the
means
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o We encounter moral and ethical issues, in our day to day life
o these two defines a personality, attitude, and behavior
oThe word Morals is derived from a Greek word “Mos” means
custom
o Ethics, it is derived from a Greek word “Ethikos” means
character
o morals are the customs established by group of individuals
whereas ethics defines the character of an individual
Personality, a characteristic way of thinking, feeling, and
Some moral principles are: behaving.and is most clearly expressed in interactions with other
people
•Do not cheat
Loyalty is the quality of staying firm in your friendship or support
•Be loyal for someone or something in oath of loyalty to the monarchy

•Be patient
•Always tell the truth
•Be generous

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 Ethics is also known as moral philosophy. Some ethical
principles are:
Honesty and truthfulness are not the same
•Truthfulness
thing. Being honest means not telling lies.
•Honesty Being truthful means actively making
•Loyalty known all the full truth of a matter. Lawyers
must be honest, but they do not have to be
•Respect
truthful.
•Fairness
•Integrity
Examples
•If the son of a big politician has committed a crime and he uses his powers to
free his son from legal consequences. This act is immoral because the
politician is trying to save a culprit.
•A very close friend or relative of an interviewer comes for an interview and
without asking a single question, he selects him. This act is unethical because
the selection process must be transparent and unbiased.
•A grocer sells adulterated products to his customers to earn more profit. This
act is neither moral nor ethical because he is cheating his customers and
profession at the same time - illegal
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Comparison Chart
Basis for Comparison Morals Ethics
Ethics are the guiding
Morals are the beliefs of the
principles which help the
Meaning individual or group as to what
individual or group to decide
is right or wrong.
what is good or bad.
General principles set by Response to a specific
What is it?
group situation
Ethikos which means
Root word Mos which means custom
character
Individual or Legal and
Governed By Social and cultural norms
Professional norms
Deals with Principles of right and wrong Right and wrong conduct
Applicability in Business No Yes
Morals may differ from society
Consistency to society and culture to Ethics are generally uniform.
culture.
Morals are expressed in the
Expression form of general rules and Ethics are abstract.
statements.
Freedom to think and choose No Yes
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Values
principles or standards of behaviour; one's judgement of what is
important in life
ethics determine what is right, values determine what is
important.
Comparison Chart
Basis for Comparison Ethics Values
Value is defined as the
Ethics refers to the guidelines
principles and ideals, that helps
Meaning for conduct, that address
them in making judgement of
question about morality.
what is more important.
What are they? System of moral principles. Stimuli for thinking.
Consistency Uniform Differs from person to person
What is morally correct or
Tells What we want to do or achieve.
incorrect, in the given situation.
Extent of rightness or
Determines Level of importance.
wrongness of our options.
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What it does? Constrains Motivates 11
Examples of ethics
Ethics is a branch of philosophy that is responsible for studying the principles
that govern the conduct of an individual. Ethical principles depend on the
situation in which a person encounters and varies from one to another.
1 - Acceptance
One of the ethical principles is acceptance of everything that is different. In this
sense, racism, homophobia and xenophobia are unethical behaviors.
2 - Charity (dislike of homosexual) (fear and hatred of anything that is strange)

Charity is a virtue that involves benevolence towards other individuals

3 - Respect
Respect is the courtesy that one has towards other people.
4 - Compassion
Compassion is the feeling of commiseration(feel sympathy) towards the sufferings of
another person. For example, a person with terminal cancer may request
euthanasia.
Morality tells us that we should not attempt against the life of another person.
However, in some cases, professional ethics allow assisted suicide to be
applied.
5 - Responsibility
Responsibility is an ethical principle of each individual that refers to the
fulfillment
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6 - Empathy
The empathy is the ability of human beings to"connect"affectively with
another individual, to share and understand their emotions and feelings.
Being empathic allows us to understand the behavior of other people.
7 - Equality
Equality means that people are treated in a way that all can achieve the
same results regardless of the particular factors that condition each
individual.
8 - Integrity
the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles, the state of
being whole and undivided. His behavior is both ethical and moral, He does
what he says
9 - Justice
Justice is a virtue that states that each person should receive what he
deserves.
10 - Transparency
Transparency is an ethic principle that relates to honesty. For example, if it
is your job to interview a friend to offer a job and give him the job even
though he does not meet the requirements, your procedure will not be
transparent
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but biased. 13
Types of Ethics
Meta Ethics:
It asks how we understand, know about, and what we mean when we talk
about what is right & what is wrong/ A meta-ethical study would be concerned
with determining the meaning and objectivity of moral concepts of right and
wrong, or good and bad.
e.g “Murder is wrong”
Normative Ethics:
It investigates the set of questions that arises when considering how one has
to act morally in a given situation. Normative ethics intends to find out which
actions are right and wrong, or which character traits are good and bad.
(e.g) Is it right to kill a person for the sake of other poor people
It examines the standards for the rightness & wrongness of actions. But meta
ethics studies the meaning of moral & its nature
Virtue Ethics:
It is an approach to ethics that stresses more on an individual’s character that
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as a driving force for ethical behavior 14
• What are work ethics?
A work ethic is a set of moral principles an employee uses in his job and it
encompasses many of these traits: reliability/dependability, dedication,
productivity, cooperation, character, integrity, sense of responsibility, emphasis
on quality, discipline, teamwork, professionalism, respectfulness, determination
etc. This involves how one gets along with others.

Work ethics involve honesty and accountability. Work ethics guide us what one
does or would do in a particular situation. The big question in a situation
involves what is right and acceptable, versus what is wrong

Throughout the last few years, some companies whose work ethic -- honesty,
integrity and accountability -- have been rather shady and have negative impact
on other people. Business can not allow room for moral ambiguity,
rationalization or ego in its positive work ethics model

Work ethics, such as honesty (not lying, cheating, and stealing), doing a job
well, valuing what one does, having a sense of purpose and feeling/being a part
of a greater vision or plan are vital. Philosophically, if one does not have proper
work ethics, a person’s conscience may be bothered. People having good work
ethic(s); should not only want to do, but desire to do the proper thing in a given
situation
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•Service Learning
"Service-learning is a form of experimental education where learning occurs
through a cycle of action and reflection as students work with others through a
process of applying what they are learning to community problems, and at the
same time, reflecting upon their experience as they seek to achieve real
objectives for the community and deeper understanding for themselves" Eyler
and Giles, (1999)
• A method by which students improve academic learning and develop
personal skills through structured service projects that meet community needs.
•Service learning builds upon students’ service activities by providing them with
opportunities to learn by preparing, leading, and reflecting upon their service
experiences

Service-learning can be described by what it is not;

it is NOT volunteerism, community service, internships, or field education.
Field education and internships emphasize student learning: while students
may provide valuable service, the objective is to provide students hands on
experience to further their educational goals. Volunteerism and community
service emphasize the service provided: the intended beneficiary is the service
recipient (Furco 1996)
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So while service-learning share some of the components of volunteerism,
community service, internships and field education, unlike these activities,
service-learning applies equal focus to both learning and the service
goals.
It requires an academic context and is designed so that that the service and
learning goals are mutually reinforcing.
A useful distinction among service programs can be typified by whether the
beneficiary is the recipient (community agency/member) or provider (student) or
the focus is on learning or service
Goals of Service Learning

•For students: An opportunity to enrich and apply knowledge learned in the

classroom in applied settings.
•For faculty and college: Move from teacher-centered, to learning centered, to
community-centered pedagogy( the method and practice of teaching)
•Shared Ownership: Expanding the classroom into the community and vice
versa

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Components of Effective Service Learning
 Preparation.
(Setting objectives for skills to be learned, issues to be considered;
planning projects so they contribute to learning.)
 Performing the Actual Service
 Analysis of Experience, Lessons Learned, Sharing and Reflecting on
Experience and Implication
Outcomes of Service Learning
1. Connection of theory to practice
2. Puts concepts into concrete form and provides a context for understanding
abstract matter
3. Provides an opportunity to test and refine theories and introduce new
theories
4. Appreciation and understanding of social, economic and environmental
implications
5. Appreciation and understanding of moral and ethical ramifications of
people’s actions
6. Learn communication, interpersonal and technical skills
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7. Self-directed learning – inquiry, logical thinking, relationship of ideas and
experience.
8. Transference of learning from one context to another – which allows for the
opportunity to reflect, conceptualize and apply experience-based knowledge
9. Improves critical thinking, information retrieval, technical, qualitative and
quantitative reasoning, oral & written communication skills
10.Improves understanding of self and community
Importance of Reflection
Distinguishes SL from other forms of experiential education.
Links service experience to course materials, readings and lectures.
Evaluation and Assessment
1. Can not be evaluated in the same manner as exams or research papers
2. Students and faculty assess the usefulness of service learning
3. Students assess how much they have learned and how their attitudes have
changed due to the service experience
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Relationship of setting and service to course and content 19
4. Skills developed from service.
5. Extent of critical reflection.
6. Format and presentation of final paper, project or presentation.
7. Verification of time spent in setting
Guiding and Reflective Questions for Students
What did you learn about the value of the service you performed?
What community needs did your service address?
Do you feel that your service helped or changed anything in the community?
Why or Why not?
What have you learned about working and collaborating with others in the
community?
Do you feel your service helped or changed anything in you? About your
career aspirations?
What skills did you develop from this experience?
What specific course content from class or your readings relate to this
service? Can you transfer this knowledge to your life and other professional
experiences?
What lessons did you learn? Was service learning an effective way to make
class material more meaningful?
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04-02-2019 making a layer on 21
surface to protect soil
Civic Virtues

Civic virtue/s are the values that are expected from the
citizen of any functioning democracy
the concept of virtue is taken from ancient Greece politics
where virtue was considered as the ability to successfully full
fill any purpose
Civic virtue are those qualities of citizens that they are
expected to posses as part of a civil society.
This may range from various actions like giving vote,
participating in elections, paying the taxes on time etc. Simlarly
since education is crucial for making us enlighten for taking
best decisions hence getting education or giving education to
the kids is considered a Civic virtue.

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 civic virtue promotes a sense of attachment to and responsibility for the
community of which the citizen is a part

 good citizen is prone to give priority to public rather than private good where
they are conflicting.(consumption by one necessarily prevents that of
another) e.g party chief/governer

 civic virtue has to be taught or to be developed in citizens. Since every

country has a special interest in the presence of civic virtue in society, every
young citizen is required to attend school, at which they receive (among
others) civic education. By teaching children about the country’s history,
geography and political system and having them practice skills like writing
and debating, the nation tries to foster an active, responsible and
independent citizenry

 the amount of civic virtue citizens acquire is for a great deal a matter of their
own interest and choice. There are, however, ways for a state to actively
promote civic virtue in its citizens

 civic virtue is not only concerned with the right state of mind
but also with right action.
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 The common good can be activities of any kind that sustain or improve the
community: obeying the law, voting, doing volunteer work, organizing
neighbour hood activities, becoming active in public or civil organizations or
becoming active in politics
 Every citizen can obey the law, vote, and do some kind of volunteer work.
But it is simply not possible, nor in the public interest, for every citizen to
pursue a political life
 when the good citizen sees there is a lack of local politicians and regards
himself able to fill such a position, he will run for office because it is in the
common good to do so
 Virtue is concerned with right feelings and doing the right action, in the right
amount, towards the right persons and at the right time
 A person giving away all his money to people who do not really need it, to
such an extent that he and his family have trouble making ends meet, can
hardly be said to possess the virtue of liberality
 the common good must be either the aggregate of all individual goods or
something that is in the interest of every one (or most citizens) in the
community
 The concept of civic virtue focuses on the community, while autonomy is
concerned with the individual
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.
Living Peacefully
In the world human society prefers peace, purity & prosperity
The happiness and richness of our life depends on our consciousness and
activities. Peace will prevail once we have pure thoughts, feelings & wishes.
Once energy of thought, word and actions is balanced peace will be dawned.
Person will have a peaceful life with good harmony.
Ways to have peaceful living

• Do Not Interfere In Others’ Business Unless Asked:

•we have convinced ourselves that our way is the best way & our logic is the
perfect logic
•Forgive And Forget:
•This is the most powerful aid to peace of mind, but also challenging to achieve.
•Do Not Crave For Recognition:
•People may praise you when you are in power & not sooner you are powerless
•They will forget your achievement and will start finding faults in you
• Why do you wish to kill yourself in striving for their recognition? Do your duties
ethically
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•Do Not Be Jealous:
•you will only be what you are destined to be. Nothing will be gained by blaming
others for your misfortune. Jealousy will take away your peace of mind.
•Change Yourself:
•Change yourself to suit your environment that brings peace in mind and life
•Endure What Cannot Be Cured:
•we must learn to put up with inconveniences. Believe in yourself and you will
gain patience, inner strength and will power.
•Do Not Bite Off More Than You Can Chew:
• We often tend to take more responsibilities than we are capable of only to
satisfy our ego. Know your limitations and limit your material engagements. It
will prevent you from thinking of matters that upset you. A clear mind is always
a peaceful mind.

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Never Leave The Mind Vacant:
•An empty mind is the devil’s workshop. Keep your mind occupied in
something positive, Engage on something that holds your interest
Do Not Procrastinate And Never Regret:
You are ignorant of your future. It is your duty to accomplish your task. You can
learn from your mistakes and succeed the next time. Sitting back and worrying
will lead to nothing. DO NOT REGRET. Whatever happened was destined to
happen
Outwardly: living in peace is a way of life in which we respect and love each
other in spite of our cultural, religious, and political differences.

Inwardly, each of us needs to cultivate peace. This means understanding and

overcoming fear, anger, intolerance, and lack of social skills that causes
violence
As an example, controlling other people through threatening behaviour will
result in a response out of compulsion rather than respect and love. Typically
this will lead to displeasure and anger. While one may get his or her "way" it
will not be with the happiness of those around him or her. This is not a peaceful
way to live.
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Another example:
One teacher may rely on detentions and threat of punishment to keep
students in line. Another may reward students for good behaviour and the
students are made to feel appreciated and inspired. Both may have orderly
classrooms...but which one would a student want to learn in? And which one
would likely have students learn most effectively?
Peace before power. Gandhi demonstrated that power based on love is more
effective and permanent than the power gained through threat of punishment.

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Courage (also called bravery, bravado or valour)

It is the choice and willingness to confront agony, pain, danger,

uncertainty or intimidation. Physical courage is courage in the
face of physical pain, hardship, death or threat of death, while
moral courage is the ability to act rightly in the face of popular
opposition, shame, scandal, discouragement, or personal loss

(eg; Malala, Anna Hazare)

Steps to develop Courage

Learn to face reality

Have a good value system and adhere to that
Build a good character
Have a clean mind & thought
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Valuing Time:

 It means giving importance to time

 Time is precious and can not be regained once it is lost
 “A stitch in time saves nine”
 MNC counts on your work engagement
 For an entrepreneur time estimation for a job is a must
 Good way of time management is to prioritize the work
 By knowing the value of time, one should be able to tell what
tasks are worthwhile to perform, and which tasks give a poor
return. This helps to manage good performance with profit
• The history of great reformers and innovators have stressed
the importance of time and valuing time. The proverbs, ̳Time
and tide wait for nobody‘ and ‘̳Delay is the thief of time‘
‘Delay is dangerous’ amply illustrate this point
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An anecdote to highlight the ̳value of time‘ is as follows:

To realize the value of one year, ask the student who has failed in the
examinations;.
To realize the value of one month, ask the mother who has delivered a
premature baby;
to realize the value of one week, ask the editor of weekly;
to realize the value of one day, ask the daily wage laborer;
to realize now the value of one hour, ask the lovers longing to meet;
to realize the value of one minute, ask a person who has missed the train;
to realize the value of one second, ask the person who has survived an
accident;
to realize the value one millisecond, ask the person who has won the bronze
medal in Olympics;
to realize the value of one micro second, ask the isro team of scientists;
to realize the value of one nanosecond, ask a Hardware engineer!;
If you have still not realized the value of time, wait; let me back up as I know
the value of time as an Engineer
How about you?
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Cooperation
Cooperation is the process of groups of organisms working or
acting together for common or mutual benefit, working in
competition for selfish benefit is the contrary to this

Many animal and plant species cooperate both with other

members of their own species and with members of other species
e.g Lion after hunting share the prey
Crows on seeing food call their fellow mates
Bison in group can attack lion etc
Co-operative financial institutions
(banks, societies, self help scheme etc)
Co-operative business federations
(Avin, marketing, Amul etc)
J & K Iqbal foundation helps Mananthavadi residents

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It is a team spirit present with every individual engaged in engineering.

Co-operation is activity between two persons or sectors that aims at

integration of operations (synergy), while not sacrificing the autonomy of either
party.

Further, working together ensures, coherence, i.e. blending of different skills

required, towards common goals.

Willingness to understand others, think and act together and putting this into
practice, is cooperation.

Cooperation promotes co linearity, coherence (blend), co-ordination (activities

linked in sequence or priority) and the synergy (maximizing the output, by
reinforcement).

The whole is more than the sum of the individuals. It helps in minimizing the
input resources (including time) and maximizes the outputs, which include
quantity, quality, effectiveness, and efficiency.

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The impediments to successful cooperation are:

 Clash of ego of individuals.

 Lack of leadership and motivation.

Conflicts of interests, based on region, religion, language, and caste.

Ignorance and lack of interest.

Developing Co operation
careful planning,
motivation,
leadership,
fostering and rewarding team work
professionalism and humanism beyond the ̳divides‘,
training on different cultures,
mutual understanding ̳
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Commitment
Commitment is willingness to give your time and energy to something that you
believe in, or a promise or firm decision to do something.
Commitment means acceptance of the responsibilities&duties and cooperation
means help and assistance
Work teams committed & cooperative - achieve the goals the business has set.
(ISO Vision Mission)
There are a number of signals that indicate the work team is committed and
cooperating. These include:
•• maintaining or increasing quality
•• reaching or exceeding production targets
•• decreasing complaints from team members
•• limited conflict between team members
•• fewer workplace injuries
•There are degrees of team involvement in decision making
•The greater the need for the team to accept your decisions, the more you
should involve them.
• The more the problem or decision affects the team, the more you should
involve them
• Their involvement in implementing the decision. If the team will be
implementing or carrying out the decision, involve them
• The ability and desire of the group to become involved could be useful for
training and development purposes & also for accomplishing tasks.
Escalation of commitment:
Dedicate resource (Time&money) to a failing course of action
Delayed power plants cost more – escalation of commitment
Root causes
1. Plan approval 2. Design changes 3. Price Escalation 4. Revision of Order
Students Commitment:
 Commitment to apply talent, knowledge and wisdom to attain goal
 Commitment to be a professional not to be an engineer

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Respect for others
 Respect for others is based on self-respect. It really is following the Golden
Rule: Do unto others as you would have others do unto you
 Being a polite and courteous person makes one a rare individual in today's
world. Politeness, and a genuine concern for the rights and feelings of others
in our society seems to have slammed the door in our faces
 A culture of rudeness has become a feature of modern society
(e.g) chit chatting in a gathering, rudeness in dealing with customer,
irresponsible behaviour to elders etc
 viewed politeness and good manners as weakness and as character flaws to
be overcome
 They view rudeness to others as a sign of their superiority as people, and a
badge of their status
 Politeness and common courtesy are more likely to achieve success, in
business and in life, than a selfish, bullying attitude
 Whether in your personal relationships with others, or in your company,
being polite and well mannered pays off in many ways.
 In personal life, displaying good manners in general shows respect for the
other person. That will be reciprocated by the other person
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Caring
Be more generous: with time or money, or both.
Caring in Engineering:
More opportunities to care & concerns of affected society
Humanitarian issues & environmental issues during project execution
Treat others like you want to be treated:
Standard of living up liftment ; Cheaper technology, cost effective m
anufacturing techniques
Be considerate of others:
Being considerate is being caring.
Put yourself in some ones shoes
1. Compliment others though messy
2. considerate of others feeling
3. Anticipate the needs of others
4. be considerate of others when you are in public
5. be considerate of other people financial situation
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Sharing
 Sharing is the joint use of a resource or space.
 In its narrow sense, it refers to joint or alternating use of inherently finite
goods, such as a common land or a shared residence.
 It is also the process of dividing and distributing
(e.g) organism after taking nutrition/oxygen, its internal organs are designed to
divide and distribute the energy taken in, to supply parts of its body that need it.
Sharing for Engineers
Design data sharing- tech transfer/transfer to fab hub
(e.g) KS between engineering Institution & Industry, R&D joint ventures,
Modelling for prediction
Multi disciplined systems engineering approach to multi scale engineering
Knowledge sharing is a precondition for engineering project design teams to
achieve an efficient design
To improve knowledge sharing, better knowledge leadership is essential
knowledge leadership refers to constant development and innovation of
information resources, individual skills, and knowledge and learning networks
effective knowledge sharing depends on knowledge leaders to develop a share
vision, and promote a trustworthy and collaborative environment for designers
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Global sprit of collaboration & partnership
Knowledge sharing and technology insemination among members
Data sharing in public domain for knowledge growth and public betterment (internet)
Global market economy promotes technology transfer and adoption
(e.g)
Transfer – automotive, cell phones, multimedia systems
Adoption – make in India program

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Honesty
honesty means being trustworthy, loyal, fair, and sincere. Honesty is valued in
many ethnic and religious cultures .

"Honesty is the best policy" is a proverb of Benjamin Franklin;

"Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom" proverb of
Thomas Jefferson.

•engineers are required and expected to seek and to speak the truth
conscientiously and to avoid all acts of deception
(public safety, removing fear of the society, safeguard public interest)
•engineers to “Issue public statements only in an objective and truthful
manner”
(power crisis, environmental hazard of radiation leak, atmospheric pollution
level etc)
• engineers to “Avoid misleading acts”
(ignoring safety maintenance, avoiding precautionary measures,
misinformation to subordinates to get things done, cashing by false
advertisement etc)
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Truthfulness in research:

–Honesty in conducting/reporting experiments

–No theft of others’ results
–No misuse of research funds

For engineering students & Faculty

Misrepresentation:
• giving false information to an instructor, (by lying why one missed a test)
• Failure to contribute to a collaborative project:
(failing to do one’s fair share on a joint project)
• Sabotage:
preventing others from doing their work, (by disrupting their lab experiment)

Theft:
Stealing, for example, stealing library books or others property

Faculty unethical behaviour

Failure to show up/(take up) for class,
failure to monitor exams/report, re-use of old exams
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Self Confidence

Self-confidence is a person's belief or trust in their own ability

Self-confidence relates to self-assuredness in one‘s personal judgment, ability,

power, etc.

Self-confidence in engineering:

understand a system so thoroughly: (Know design logic, fab issues, snags and
analysis, fit for purpose decisions etc )

Known exactly how it fails, known when it won’t fail; gain confidence in oneself
despite numerous failings (know design pressure, operating pressure, yielding,
defects presence and rectification, acceptance test data etc)

important source of self-efficacy was found to be past experience of success or

failure
(lessons learnt, recollecting attempts to avoid failure, adopted modes for
success etc)
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Ways to improve self confidence:

Visualize yourself as you want to be (think high)

Affirm(declare) yourself (assume status)
Do one thing that scares you every day(no in longrun)
Question your inner critic (for correction)
Take the 100 days of rejection challenge(desensitize oneself to rejection)
Set yourself up to win(focus on “did-it" lists rather “to-do" lists)
Help someone else(volunteer to mentor, practically assist or teach another)
Care for yourself (good physical health, emotional health and social health)
Create personal boundaries(knowing strength & weakness, accept challenge
within the greater will be self-confidence)

Shift to an equality mentality(see yourself as being equal to everyone)

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Character
The character of a person (or place) – combination all the qualities possessed
- that make them distinct from other people (or places)
(Ex short temper, brilliance, hygienic, kind hearted)
Some character traits have to do with values/beliefs.
Some examples of these types of character traits include: Religious, Honest,
Loyal, Devoted, Loving, Kind, Sincere, Ambitious, Satisfied, Happy, Faithful,
Patient,
Some characteristics can be consciously developed, learned or acquired (e.g)
character traits that Engineers consciously choose to learn or adopt include:
• Education or acquiring Information
• Desire to Figure Things Out(solve) ...
• Applied Creativity(innovation). ...
• Math Skills. ...
• Mechanical Skills. ...
• Listening and Problem-Solving Skills. ...
• Interpersonal
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Spirituality

Spirituality has to do with the spirit — soul/ inner life.

Spirituality - to do with religion, but it doesn't have to be religious
spirituality is more individual.
Spirituality - the concept of an ultimate/alleged immaterial reality,
an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being;
or the "deepest values and meanings by which people live.

Spiritual practices - meditation, prayer and contemplation(concentration) - intended

to develop an individual's inner life

•practices to increase compassion, empathy, and attention, as well as quiet

the mind.

•Meditation induce calm and clear-headedness

•improve concentration and attention
•Richard Davidson - help to regulate emotions and relieve stress
•Spiritual strength help to overcome hardships
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An idea or practice is "spiritual" when it reveals our personal desire to establish
a felt-relationship with the deepest meanings or powers governing life.”
Examples:
• Computers:
– Developed & adopted over about three decades
– Significant impacts on society:
• Not well understood or nor always predicted, e.g: The Y2K bug
– However largely accepted as a positive technology
• Nuclear power stations
– Developed & adopted over about three decades
– Significant impacts on society:
• Not well understood nor always predicted, eg. Chernobyl
– Widespread concern & installed capacity in decline

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Role of Engineers & Social Expectation
Engineers responsibility to reduce negative impacts
Engaging with the community affected to keep them informed and listen to
their concerns.
Design infrastructure systems that provide benefits to the communities they
affect
using the opportunity to regenerate the local community (by building homes or
shops)
Consider construction project to deliver additional, beneficial services
(could new superfast broadband connectivity be introduced when the train
line is built)
Engineers also have to manage the risks posed by the technologies they
develop.
understanding the immediate safety implications of its development and use

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unforeseen or long term risks - important to the engineer

(example, synthetic biology, nanotechnologies and autonomous/automatic

systems all offer potential benefits and opportunities)

But they all pose potential dangers, from the release into the environment of
substances whose behaviour is not fully understood,

use of autonomous vehicles – confusion in owning responsibility and

accountability in the case of an accident

emerging technologies - public fears or objections about their use - engineers

need to take seriously

Engineers have the opportunity - engage in projects –yield positive contribution

& help to solve problems faced by society

Engineers role to play in developing energy efficient technologies and low

carbon energy generation - will be essential to limiting climate change

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crucial role in adapting our infrastructure to the effects of a changing climate
resilient to severe storms (making roads, railways, energy and
communications systems)

to protect quality of life as the risk of major flood and other extreme weather
increases

globally can contribute- affordable and appropriate infrastructure for under

developing countries, deliver clean water, sanitation, power and
communications to poor communities

Engineers role in developing healthcare systems, providing such systems in

developing countries at an affordable price

Engineering can improve quality of life way beyond providing essential

services such as energy and healthcare (entertainment electronics, house
hold electrical appliances, power saving, super conductivity etc)

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Engineering offers - remote connections to workplaces, virtual meetings,
automation & robotics - people to get more out of their work and free time

Engineering supports - economy, creating jobs and prosperity, helping

nations to grow economically.

engineers engage with the wider public. We responsible - limit our energy
use and the pollution

We have concerns - the health and wellbeing of people - with less

wealthy/ resources

Under developing countries – problems more – limited fund – cost effective

system – a must

Engineers - major role – listen to society - inform what engineering can

achieve - focus their efforts to ensure that engineering meets the needs of
people

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