Ethical Theories

Ethical theories aim to make moral reflection clear, organized, and accessible. Ethical theories create a framework that articulates the moral principles that could provide a justification and guidance for one’s actions. Ethical theories can be applied to form a complex formula that relate engineering ethics to the moral principles. All ethical theories represent an altruistic behavior toward not only humans but also all living things. This paper seeks to provide a thorough knowledge of three ethical theories and explain their role in ethical decision making in engineering.
Deontology or duty (deon) ethics says that the right actions are those required by duties to respect the autonomy of individuals. It focuses on the universal principles behind actions rather than actions’ results. That is, there are things that are mala in se, or evil in themselves apart from their consequences. Essentially, all deontological systems argue that the ethical values cannot be reduced to measurable consequences.
In contrast, utilitarianism is the consequential moral theory that defines the right action as the one that maximizes the overall good. If numerical values can be given …show more content…
It makes it easier to identify ethical dilemmas involved in engineering tasks and grasp complicated concepts associated with the profession. The main objective of the course is not to make students who take the course more ethical. However, what differentiate the student who has taken engineering ethics form a student who has not is the ability to think morally. Introducing students to ethical theories can help them recognize the diverse kinds of moral value and identify what values are at stake in different situations. The stage that comes after that is applying ethical theories and clarifying the reasons behind moral decisions. Also, studying ethics provide you with understanding of why being ethical matters and why your personal values matter to