Defining the Responsibilities of Engineers: A Conceptual Framework for Engineering Ethics Education, Policy, and Practice

Responsibility is a core concept for engineering ethics, yet it is often used ambiguously and is subject to various interpretations. Given that the mission statements of engineering higher education institutions, accreditation requirements, and engineering professional codes are built on a language of responsibility, it is important to have a structured approach that includes its evolving dimensions. This article surveys the engineering ethics literature to identify historical developments and develop a conceptual framework for defining the diverse responsibilities engineers have qua engineers. This conceptual framework categorizes engineering responsibilities at four analytical levels (Micro/Macro and Subject/Object). Micro-Subject responsibilities address the values, characteristics, and decision-making of individual engineers. Micro-Object responsibilities address the values, characteristics, and culture of organizations where an engineer practices. Macro-Subject responsibilities address the values, mission and decision-making of the engineering profession or collectives. Macro-Object responsibilities address the social, economic and political structures and context driving engineering practice. The framework provides a practical tool for engineering curriculum development and accreditation processes by providing clear formulations for setting learning objectives and graduate attributes that support the embedding of responsibility across the curriculum and across accreditation requirements.