Engineering as Social

Experimentation

To undertake a great work, and especially a work

of a novel type, means carrying out an experiment.
It means taking up a struggle with the forces of
nature without the assurance of emerging as the
victor after the first attack.
- Louis Marie Henri Navier (1785 1836)

Role of Experimentation in the

Design Process
Preliminary tests or simulations of concepts
Components and modules tested prior to detailed
design
Cycle of test and modification through production
Beyond specific elements of design, each project
taken in a totality can be viewed as an experiment

Contributors to Experimental
Nature of Projects
Project carried out in partial ignorance
Parts functionality & availability
Luxury of waiting until all relevant facts are in not available (ability to work with partial
knowledge is one talent crucial to an engineers success)

Outcomes of projects are generally uncertain

Unknown risk may attend even a seemingly benign project

Effective engineering depends on knowledge gained both before and after

products are released
Monitoring cannot be limited to in-house development

Informed Consent
Keystone of properly conducted experiments
involving human subjects
Main elements:
Volunteerism: absence of force, fraud, or deception
Knowledge: all the information needed to make a
reasonable decision (not just what they request)
Competence: consenter is competent to process the
information and make rational decisions

Morally Responsible Engineers

as Social Experimenters
A primary obligation to protect the safety of human
subjects and respect their right of consent
A constant awareness of experimental nature of any
project, forecasting and monitoring side effects
Autonomous, personal involvement in all steps of a project
Accepting accountability for the results of a project

How this Earmarks a Style of

Engineering
Conscientiousness people act responsibly to the extent that they
conscientiously commit themselves to live according to moral
values.
Moral values transcend a consuming preoccupation with narrowly
conceived self-interest
A sense of awareness is implied
A role as a social guardian but not to suggest that engineers force,
paternalistically, their own views of the social good upon society

How this Earmarks a Style of

Engineering
Relevant Information conscientiousness blind without
factual information
Moral concern involves a commitment to obtain and properly
assess all available information
Obligation to grasp the context (uses) of ones work
Since our vision is limited and projects are experimental,
ongoing monitoring is crucial

How this Earmarks a Style of

Engineering
Moral Autonomy authenticity in moral conduct and
principles
Kant: Moral beliefs and attitudes held on the basis of critical
reflection rather than passive adoption
Commitment to action (not abstract or merely verbal)
Professional Societies such as IEEE can be a source of
employee moral support

How this Earmarks a Style of

Engineering
Accountability acceptance of moral responsibility for their
actions

Willing to submit ones actions to moral scrutiny

Open and responsive to assessment of others
Willing to present morally cogent reason for ones conduct
Resistant to a narrowed sense of accountability when working under
external authority that may promote fragmentation, diffusion, meeting
schedules, and limited roles

Commitment to Safety

A thing is safe if , were its risks fully known,

those risks would be judged acceptable by a
reasonable person in light of settled value
principles.

Effect of Information on Risk

Assessment
Imagine unusual disease expected to kill 600
Two alternative programs to combat disease proposed
Program A: 200 people will be saved
Program B: 1/3 probability that 600 will be saved, and 2/3
probability that no people will be saved

Which program do you favor?

Effect of Information on Risk

Assessment
Imagine unusual disease expected to kill 600
Two alternative programs to combat disease proposed
Program C: 400 people will die
Program D: 1/3 probability that no body will die, and 2/3
probability that 600 will die.

Which program do you favor?