Eindhoven University of Technology
Ethics, Technology and Engineering
Eindhoven University of Technology

Ethics, Technology and Engineering

Lambèr Royakkers

Instructor: Lambèr Royakkers

32,948 already enrolled

Included with Coursera Plus

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
4.6

(782 reviews)

Beginner level
No prior experience required
Flexible schedule
Approx. 19 hours
Learn at your own pace
90%
Most learners liked this course
Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
4.6

(782 reviews)

Beginner level
No prior experience required
Flexible schedule
Approx. 19 hours
Learn at your own pace
90%
Most learners liked this course

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Assessments

42 assignments

Taught in English

See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills

Placeholder
Placeholder

Earn a career certificate

Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV

Share it on social media and in your performance review

Placeholder

There are 10 modules in this course

This module offers a short introduction to the course. The lecture will show a video in which Micaela dos Ramos, executive director of KIVI (the largest professional association of engineers in the Netherlands), illustrates the relevance of ethics for engineers.

What's included

1 video1 reading

This module discusses the responsibility of engineers. We will investigate what exactly responsibility is, distinguishing between passive responsibility for things that happened in the past and active responsibility for things not yet attained. Furthermore, we will discuss the professional responsibility of engineers, examine the consequences for this responsibility, such as whistle-blowing and the application of the precautionary principle.

What's included

2 videos4 readings6 assignments2 discussion prompts

In this module, we discuss the role of codes of conduct in engineering. In particular, we focus on professional codes as they have been proposed by professional engineering societies and on corporate codes, as they have been formulated by companies. We discuss these two types of codes, their structure and their content, and a number of common objections that have been levelled against codes of conduct. This includes the problem that someone is acting according to the code, but that it may nevertheless lead to dismissal.

What's included

1 video5 readings6 assignments1 discussion prompt

In this module we will discuss some ethical theories that have been developed by various philosophers. Ethical theories help us to sort out our thinking and to develop a coherent and justifiable basis for dealing with moral questions. The role of ethical theories is to provide certain arguments or reasons for a moral judgment. They provide a normative framework for understanding and responding to moral problems, so improving ethical decision-making or, at least, avoiding certain shortcuts, such as neglecting certain relevant features of the problem or just stating an opinion without any justification. In this module we shall therefore introduce three of the most well-known ethical theories: consequentialism, duty ethics and virtue ethics. These theories each have their own criteria with which they determine whether an action is right or wrong. Before we go into these three theories we shall discuss what we mean by morality and ethics, and we shall look into the points of departure of ethics: values, norms, and virtues. These points of departure often recur in ethical theories.

What's included

5 videos4 readings6 assignments1 discussion prompt

Engineers will encounter in their professional life some difficult moral situations. Such situations call for moral judgment, using the tools we have introduced in the preceding modules. However, moral judgment is not a straightforward or linear process in which you simply apply ethical theories to find out what to do. Instead it is a process in which the formulation of the moral problem, the formulation of possible ‘solutions’, and the ethical judging of these solutions go hand in hand. This messy character of moral problems, however, does not rule out a systematic approach. In this module we describe a systematic approach to problem solving that does justice to the complex nature of moral problems and moral judgment: the ethical cycle. Our goal is to provide a structured method of addressing moral problems which helps to guide a sound analysis of these problems.

What's included

1 video3 readings4 assignments

Disasters like the Challenger illustrates the importance of design to engineering. In this case, as in other cases, the design phase was crucial for the proper working of a technology and possible risks and other side effects. The example also shows the importance of activities that are closely related to design like testing, certification and inspection. Second, the example shows that most design involves trade-offs. In wheel design for trains, e.g., a trade-off is faced between energy (and cost) efficiency and comfort. We start with a description of what designing is and what type of ethical issues may arise in the various stages of the design process. Next, we shall take a closer look at one aspect of the design: the choice between different conceptual designs in the light of design requirements and trade-offs.

What's included

1 video4 readings4 assignments1 discussion prompt

Technological artefacts can be politically or morally charged. This means that ethics is not just a matter of people but also of things. To better understand, the moral role of technological artefacts, we will elaborate this notion of ‘technological mediation’. After this, the implications of this mediation approach for ethics will be investigated, especially to what extent we can moralize technology.

What's included

1 video4 readings4 assignments1 discussion prompt

To a certain extent hazards are inherent to technology. In this module, we shall discuss the moral issues that are raised by the risks and hazards of technologies, and how engineers can deal with those issues. We will discuss the current methods for assessing risks, and the moral acceptability of technological risks.

What's included

3 videos5 readings6 assignments1 discussion prompt

It is often very difficult to pinpoint responsibility and blame in cases in which many people are involved in an activity and in which many causes contributed to a disaster. Dealing with the problem of many hands requires attention for the distribution of responsibility in engineering. In this module we will discuss how responsibilities are actually distributed in engineering, and how the resulting responsibility distribution can be evaluated in terms of moral fairness (are the appropriate persons held responsible?) and in terms of effectiveness (does the responsibility distribution contribute to avoiding harm and in achieving beneficial results?)

What's included

2 videos4 readings5 assignments2 discussion prompts

What's included

1 assignment

Instructor

Instructor ratings
4.5 (183 ratings)
Lambèr Royakkers
Eindhoven University of Technology
1 Course32,948 learners

Offered by

4TU.Ethics

Recommended if you're interested in Research Methods

Why people choose Coursera for their career

Felipe M.
Learner since 2018
"To be able to take courses at my own pace and rhythm has been an amazing experience. I can learn whenever it fits my schedule and mood."
Jennifer J.
Learner since 2020
"I directly applied the concepts and skills I learned from my courses to an exciting new project at work."
Larry W.
Learner since 2021
"When I need courses on topics that my university doesn't offer, Coursera is one of the best places to go."
Chaitanya A.
"Learning isn't just about being better at your job: it's so much more than that. Coursera allows me to learn without limits."

Learner reviews

Showing 3 of 782

4.6

782 reviews

  • 5 stars

    75.06%

  • 4 stars

    18.03%

  • 3 stars

    3.32%

  • 2 stars

    1.02%

  • 1 star

    2.55%

JE
5

Reviewed on Nov 1, 2020

GR
5

Reviewed on Jun 23, 2019

SS
4

Reviewed on Jul 11, 2021

Placeholder

Open new doors with Coursera Plus

Unlimited access to 7,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs - all included in your subscription

Advance your career with an online degree

Earn a degree from world-class universities - 100% online

Join over 3,400 global companies that choose Coursera for Business

Upskill your employees to excel in the digital economy

Frequently asked questions