April 2023
Featured Article
The Honor Code and Engineering Codes of Ethics
Mark McKinney, The Citadel
Mark McKinney is the William States Lee Professor of Electrical Engineering and Department Head at The Citadel in Charleston, SC. He received his PhD from The University of South Carolina and has been in the ECE Department at The Citadel for 26 years.
“A cadet shall not lie, cheat, steal, nor tolerate those who do.”
This is the honor code all cadets at The Citadel operate under. As The Citadel was founded on The West Point model, it is unsurprising that it is also the honor code for that institution. The Citadel, however, is one of only a few remaining “single sanction” schools where there is but one punishment for violation of this code: dismissal. It is a harsh system, and it makes both the students and faculty consider honor and integrity very very carefully. When paired with the Citadel’s Core Values of “Honor, Duty, and Respect” the two make for a succinct and effective code of ethics.
From a personal perspective, this makes for a spectacular teaching environment. Students do not always make the right decisions, but honor and integrity is part of the everyday conversation; it is never far from anyone’s mind. As a result, I can hand out tests to a group of students, walk out of the room and never question for a moment that there is anything dishonest going on. The other aspect I wasn’t expecting when I first started teaching at The Citadel was the level of personal responsibility. After a particularly rough exam, the comments lean much more towards “I didn’t study enough” than “this professor is terrible.”
Teaching engineering within this environment makes for excellent discussions when the topic of engineering ethics comes up. Indeed, even in the intro course, it is clear that ethics is baked directly into the widely accepted definition of engineering:
The profession in which a knowledge of the mathematical and natural sciences gained by study, experience, and practice is applied with judgment to develop ways to utilize, economically, the materials and forces of nature for the benefit of humanity.
Note that by this definition, it isn’t even engineering if it isn’t applied with judgment and isn’t specifically for the benefit of humanity. Note it isn’t for the benefit of an individual, a corporation’s bottom line, or for the promotion of a particular agenda; it is for the benefit of all of humanity. In today’s political climate, this incredibly important distinction deserves a more thorough discussion, perhaps in a follow-up article.
Three of the core codes of ethics for electrical and computer engineers are The IEEE Code of Ethics, The Tau Beta Pi Code of Ethics, and The NSPE Code of Ethics. It is useful to compare the three, looking at the similarities and differences. The IEEE and Tau Beta Pi codes are aspirational codes, meaning that they set standards to which any members of those organizations agree to adhere. The NSPE Code of Ethics also contains six fundamental canons that make up the aspirational portion of the code, but, as the NSPE makes licensure rulings based on violations of the code, these canons are followed by much more detailed and specific rules professional engineers are expected to follow. The IEEE and Tau Beta Pi codes are modeled largely after the NSPE fundamental canons with a few interesting differences.
After a preamble, the NSPE Code of Ethics is divided into three sections: Fundamental Canons, Rules of Practice, and Professional Obligations. The six fundamental canons state that: engineers, in the fulfillment of their professional duties, shall:
- Hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public.
- Perform services only in areas of their competence.
- Issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner.
- Act for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees.
- Avoid deceptive acts.
- Conduct themselves honorably, responsibly, ethically, and lawfully so as to enhance the honor, reputation, and usefulness of the profession.
These overarching ethical principles guide the remainder of the code. The Rules of Practice section lists several specific rules pertaining to the first five fundamental canons. Finally, The Professional Obligations contains nine sections with rules supporting the sixth canon about acting honorably, responsibly, ethically, and lawfully. The rules in these two sections cover everything from when it is permissible to affix a signature to a document to agreeing to adhere to the principles of sustainable development.
If we compare just the aspirational portion of the NSPE Code to The IEEE and Tau Beta Pi Codes of Ethics, it is clear that they are all very similar, but each has unique features. It is important to note that all of the additional ethical topics highlighted in the IEEE and Tau Beta Pi codes are covered in the Rules of Practice and Professional Obligations sections of the NSPE Code of Ethics.
The Tau Beta Pi code contains seven canons, five of which are nearly identical to NSPE Fundamental Canons. NSPE canon five is replaced with: “Engineers shall build their professional reputation on the merit of their services and shall not compete unfairly with others.” Finally, an additional canon is given relating to professional development: “Engineers shall continue their professional development throughout their careers and shall provide opportunities for the professional development of those engineers under their supervision.”
The IEEE Code of Ethics is divided into three fundamental canons with specific guidelines under each. The three canons are:
- To uphold the highest standards of integrity, responsible behavior, and ethical conduct in professional activities.
- To treat all persons fairly and with respect, to not engage in harassment or discrimination, and to avoid injuring others.
- To strive to ensure this code is upheld by colleagues and co-workers.
Under the first canon are listed six guidelines that echo the NSPE Fundamental Canons but add several important concepts, most notably:
- to improve the understanding by individuals and society of the capabilities and societal implications of conventional and emerging technologies, including intelligent systems,
- to seek, accept, and offer honest criticism of technical work, to acknowledge and correct errors, to be honest and realistic in stating claims or estimates based on available data, and to credit properly the contributions of others, and, similar to the Tau Beta Pi code,
- to maintain and improve our technical competence.
The second canon lists three guidelines related to not engaging in any form of discrimination, harassment or malicious acts. Finally, the third canon echoes back to The West Point concept of tolerance where we are held accountable for other engineers adhering to the ethical principles laid out.
Humanity relies on the ethical behavior of its engineers; the very fabric of society depends on it. These codes guide us to behave morally and with the greater interest of humanity in mind. While not nearly as prescriptive as any of the codes specified here, not lying, cheating, stealing, or tolerating anyone who does coupled with the concepts of honor, duty and respect forms a pretty good framework within which to conduct our personal and professional lives and I am proud to be associated with an institution where this is part of the everyday language.