PROFESSIONAL ETHICAL CODES AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

Professional Ethical Codes and Theoretical Perspectives

Introduction

Professional codes of ethics are regulations that guide the conduct of professionals in a

particular industry towards colleagues, their leaders, the organization, and society at large

(Yallop, 2012). Disrespect to these regulations could be enough reason for the revocation of a

professionals license to work in a given field. The Association for Computing Machinery

(ACM) Code of Ethics regulates the behavior of professionals in the computing field. In most

cases, professional codes of ethics are not sufficient in preventing the misconduct of employees.

In such instances, professionals and entire organizations are obliged to refer to theoretical

perspectives in the scientific field to respond to issues they are facing appropriately. Therefore,

professional ethical codes such as the ACM Code of Ethics lack in content since they do not

encompass all the essential provisions such as those contained in David Resnik's "The Ethics of

Science." Therefore, it is important for professional organizations to consider theoretical

perspectives of researchers, Resnik in this case, when crafting professional ethical codes.

The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Code of Ethics

The ACM code of ethics was adopted by the associations council on October 1992.

According to the introduction of the code, all members of the association must commit to ethical

content. The code has 24 vital provisions that appear as statements of responsibility and a

number of, and not all issues that professionals are likely to experience in their workplace. The

provisions are divided into three sections; section one touches on the basic ethical provisions,

section two has specific regulations regarding professional conduct, while section three pertains

to professionals with a leadership role. The preamble also states that a number of words and
 PROFESSIONAL ETHICAL CODES AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

phrases are subject to different interpretations and that there is a possibility of any ethical

principle conflicting with other principles in particular circumstances (ACM, 1992).

The moral imperatives of the ACM ethical code apply to the responsibilities ACM

members must undertake. Some of the provisions of this section include the commitment of

members to contribute to the good of human beings and the society in general, to avoid the

occurrence of negative effects or injury to others, and to always practice honesty and trustworthy

(ACM, 1992). This section further ensures that members commit to being fair and taking action

to prevent any sort of discrimination, honoring the property rights of others such as copyrights

and patent, providing credit in case they use or adopt the work and ideas of others, respecting the

privacy of others, and ensuring that confidentiality is upheld when dealing with the private

information or data of others (ACM, 1992). One finds that in section one of the ACM code of

ethics, individuals who wish to work in the computing are obliged to conduct their work in a

moral way while considering that their actions affect others in their work of place (ACM, 1992).

Hence, individuals in the category of others include fellow employees, employers, supervisors,

managers and clients. Also, it is vital to state that section one of this code of ethics does appeal to

the ethical values of individuals as it calls for the observation of values such as respect, honor,

fairness, trustworthiness, and being human to others. This section asks professionals to treat

others as they would expect to be treated if in a particular position, that is, whether they are

clients, employees, managers, supervisors, or employees.

Section two includes guidelines that are more specific to the work of employees. The first

and fourth provisions states that professionals must always work to achieve quality in every

undertaking. The second provision calls for professionals to take part in independent studies,

seminars, conferences, and become involved in professional organizations with the aim of
 PROFESSIONAL ETHICAL CODES AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

advancing their skills and technical knowledge to attain the highest level of professional

competence. The third provision advises professionals to understand and respect all legal

regulations that concern their professional roles. This provision calls for professionals to comply

with all provisions unless the regulation does not have adequate moral basis. Therefore, this

provision calls for professionals to forego any regulation that is morally unsound. The fifth

provision of this section provides that professionals should understand that they are in a special

position where they are trusted by individuals. As a result, they must be thorough, objective,

credible, and perceptive in their work (ACM, 1992). This regulation does recognize that in some

cases, professionals might be biased and it seeks to prevent such occurrences. A sixth regulation

of the second section states that all professionals must respect their contracts, agreements, and all

the responsibilities that they are given (ACM, 1992).the seventh and eighth regulations call for

professionals to enhance the comprehension of public members about computing and its results

and to avoid unauthorized access of computer systems, data, and files (ACM, 1992).

Section three of the ACM code of ethics outlines the roles of leaders in computing

organizations. The provisions in this section call upon leaders to ensure that their members are

aware of their responsibilities and they accomplish them in a quality manner for the benefit of

the organization and that of society. Leaders should further ensure that those below them

experience the quality of working life such that employees advance professionally, are physically

safe, and their dignity is respected (ACM, 1992). Leaders are also to provide for the needs of

employees, enhance their privacy and individual dignity, and ensure that members are always

informed about the computing field in terms of new skills and limitations that one might

experience while in the field of work (ACM, 1992). Section three of the ACM code of ethics

does identify that professionals in the computing fields are also human and their needs are
 PROFESSIONAL ETHICAL CODES AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

paramount above anything else. Above all, this section does emphasize that the professional has

the responsibility to enhance knowledge in society and perform their work with integrity and

respect.

The Ethics of Science by David B. Resnik

David B. Resniks The Ethics of Science: An Introduction touches on the general field

of ethical conduct in the scientific field and scientific research. The theoretical perspectives as

articulated by Resnik are explained in detail in the authors book that covers nine sections. The

first section is titled science and ethics and it highlights how the field of science is comparable to

ethics in society. Resniak does state that ethics are an important aspects when it comes to

scientific practices as they guide the behavior of scientists, ensuring that they accomplish their

roles effectively and they uphold norms that are significant to society (Resnik, 1998). In this

section, Resnik calls upon scientists to not only engage their knowledge and scientific laws in

their work but to also engage the entire society in terms of the fact that science applies to human

beings and therefore, humanity must be observed among all professionals. The section covers a

wide range of ethical conduct and misconduct examples that are pertinent for anyone who

performs science and those who are on the receiving end. Hence, the section is not just for

employees in the field but also for those who are curious about how scientists do what they do.

Some examples of ethical violations that Resnik provides in this section are the Baltimore Affair,

and the Debate over Cold Fusion (Resnik, 1998). These case studies demonstrate to professionals

how ethical violations were violated in the past and how they could have been avoided.

The second section of Resniks book is about ethical theory and applications. This section

provides the various laws in science, the relation of these laws to ethics, politics, and religion.

Resnik provides a comprehensive coverage of the role of ethics, law, politics, and religion in
 PROFESSIONAL ETHICAL CODES AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

ethics and states all the regulations under these aspects that can affect scientific work. The author

does not shy away from stating that scientists may be compelled to oblige to legal and religious

regulations. Hence, there are a variety of regulations at their disposal and they ought to

understand what law to follow in a particular circumstance. The section discusses moral theory,

moral choices, and relativism. These, according to Resnik, are different perspectives of how

professionals are supposed to conduct themselves while performing their work.

Section three of the book views science as a profession. From this section, readers can

understand how science emerges to a profession from a vocation. Readers are also introduced to

the goals of science, and some of these include to enhance the quality of life and to provide

solutions to simple and complex issues that individuals encounter. Resnik further talks about the

modern research environment, communication and peer review in science, and the scientific

method. In these sub-sections, Resnik acknowledges that research is essential in science if

quality solutions are to be applied to simple and complex societal issues. Section four of the

textbook is about the standards of ethical conduct in science. These standards are discussed in

detail and they include honesty, carefulness, openness, freedom, and the provision of credit

where it is due (Resnik, 1998). Section four also looks at the education of professionals, their

social responsibilities, legality, opportunities, mutual respect, efficiency, and respect for their

subjects.

Section five of the textbook goes ahead to provide further information about research in

terms of how individuals can uphold objectivity. Resnik provides information about honesty in

research, misbehavior in science, error and self-deception, bias in research, conflicts of interest,

openness in research, and data management. Indeed, research is an essential part of science that

must be considered by every organization. Giorgini et al. (2015) affirm that for the scientific
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field to continue growing, it must be serviced by research questions and findings that must be

proved and disapproved. It is these research questions and findings that form the basis of how

professionals should act towards others (Giorgini et al. 2015). Section 6 provides details about

ethical issues that can be found in scientific publications. In this section, Resnik covers a variety

of topics including how individuals can practice objectivity in publications, how they can give

credit where it is due, provisions affecting intellectual property, and how science, the media, and

the public interact. Section seven includes ethical issues in the laboratory and provides

information about the relationship of mentors and mentees, harassment in the workplace, the

procedure for reporting misbehavior, teaching versus research, sharing and preserving resources,

research and human subjects, and research and animal subjects (Resnik, 1998). Section eight of

the book, which is the last section, talks about the social responsibilities of scientists, how

scientists can provide expert testimonies in court, and the broad field of industrial science

(Resnik, 1998).

Discussion

David Resniks The Ethics of Science is rich in both content and complexity of

knowledge and issues in the field of science. The ACM code of ethics only provides details about

the responsibility of professionals, their leaders, and organizations. Of more importance, this

code prescribes how individuals, their leaders, and organizations have the responsibility of

upholding social responsibility as well as fulfilling the objectives of their jobs in an ethical

manner and acting towards each other in a more responsible, considerable way (Verharen et al.

2015). In contrast to these professional ethical codes, Resniks contents in The Ethics of

Science cover a wide array of topics in the scientific field, including the ethical provisions as

provided in ACMs code of ethics. Among the topics covered in the book but not addressed in
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professional codes of ethics include scientific research, the relationship between the mentor and

the mentee, harassment in the workplace, ethical aspects in hiring and recruitment, research

regarding animal and human subjects, and scientific publications among others. All these issues

can be found within the professional tasks of ACM employees. For instance, scientific research is

an extremely important aspect of computing (Da Silva, Chaves Guimares, and Bolfarini

Tognoli, 2015). In general, computer professionals conduct a number of researchers concerning

their work and their clients. The lack of any ACM provision or regulation to address research in

the field of science implies that there is a lot of content that must be incorporated in the code of

ethics to facilitate the work of professionals who would like to engage in research.

Another noteworthy aspect that is missing in the ACM code of ethics are the examples of

ethical misconduct by professionals in the scientific field. To be more specific, Resnik provides a

case, the Baltimore Affair of 1891-1892, which led to a strained relationship between the United

States and Chile (Resnik, 1998). It is such examples that can inform professionals of the

presence or absence of misconduct of ethical codes. However, the ACM code of ethics does not

provide such illustrations to explain to professionals whether they have violated regulations or

not. In this respect, professional codes of ethics ought to be reevaluated to ascertain that they are

comprehensive in their provisions so that they prevent the occurrence of disasters or

misunderstandings in instances where experts encounter dilemmas related to their work. Resniks

book also encompasses a wide variety of scientific terminology that every professional should

understand. Komi, Marui, and Marui (2015) state that there are research terminology in the

computing field that every professional must understand. These terminology are important in

understanding the ethics involved in the field of science and how every professional must

incorporate them while working with others (Komi, Marui, and Marui, 2015).
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Additionally, it is essential to point out the redundancy that exists in ACMs codes of

ethics which could be eliminated or substituted with the theoretical perspectives in Resniks

publication. The ACM code of ethics is redundant in its provisions. There are regulations that

insist on integrity and honesty of professionals throughout the code of ethics. For instance,

Section 2.6 talks about the integrity and honesty of professionals and so do Sections 1.6 and 1.7.

Such redundancy only implies that this code of ethics is not thorough and that professionals may

not have a comprehensive set of regulations to rely on to fulfil their tasks effectively. On the

contrary, Resniks information does not portray any form of redundancy as different sections deal

with a diverse number of issues that affect the scientific field but are not similar. Brauer (2013)

states that professionals who lack ample information on all aspects that affect their jobs are less

likely to commit themselves to social justice thereby limiting their contribution to sustainability

in their organizations and society. In the scientific field, Brauer (2013) states that sustainability

plays a paramount role in ensuring that professionals do not disregard the role of social justice in

the success of their careers.

Kovac (2013) supports the application of theoretical perspectives in the computing field.

He states that instead of using professional codes, professionals could look up to theoretical

perspectives such as those declared by Resnik. Kovac (2013) argues that professional codes of

ethics only encourage professionals to be fearful. However, fear is not a motivator for ethical

behavior and it is not a moral consideration (Kovac, 2013). Professionals whose behavior is

regulated by fear are not moral individuals, but they are immoral people who are being restrained

(Kovac, 2013). Therefore, such individuals should be introduced to the use of scientific

theoretical perspectives to guide their behavior and enhance moral conduct. On the other hand,

zen (2015) justifies the manner in which theory subdues codes of ethics by stating that theory is
 PROFESSIONAL ETHICAL CODES AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

warranted by deductive and inductive reasoning and its stipulations are based on principles, laws,

and scientific discoveries. On the other hand, Ozen disqualifies professional codes of ethics

because they are not founded on concrete evidence that is from scientific research. Another

researcher Raghunathan (2013) states that ethics in a changing society are quite irrelevant as they

are always subject to revision. However, theoretical perspectives are always subject to

enhancement such that researchers will always seek ways to improve on previous theories.

Hence, these theories never go out of style and application as compared to ethical codes of

conduct (Raghunathan, 2013).

Conclusion

As much as professional codes of ethics are essential in regulating the conduct of

employees, they are lacking in content and professionals may often find themselves in dilemmas

they do not understand how to mitigate. A keen look at the ACM codes of ethics reveals that they

lack a lot of content that is essential in science. For instance, they do not highlight issues that

involve research and yet research is one of the most important undertakings in science. Also,

these codes of ethics only provide a summary of moral codes instead of delving deep into them

as .evidenced in theoretical perspectives. Moreover, there is a marked case of redundancy in

ACMs professional codes of ethics. Such redundancy could be replaced with real-life examples

of dilemmas that professionals have encountered and how they were solved. In David Resniks

The Ethics of Science, a professional can relate to the abundance of information about every

subject that pertains to science, including the computing field. Hence, theoretical provisions such

as those provided by Resnik could be adopted and incorporated into organization for

consideration by professionals in order to put an end to ethical violations.

 PROFESSIONAL ETHICAL CODES AND THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES

References

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