Ethical Engineering: Definitions, Theories and Techniques - Ethical Engineering for International Development and Environmental Sustainability - page 41

The responsibility to justify all
actions in terms of external
evidence

Effectiveness and
efficiency of action

Increase of individual good

Promise keeping

Wishes
of
others

The
risk

Respect persons
equally

Increase
of
self-
good

Intent
to
enable
(benefi-
cence

Increase
of
social
good

Truth
telling

Create
autonomy

Respect
autonomy

Legal
rights
of
others
(the law)

Codes
of
practice

Serve needs
before wants

Minimize harm

Increase of the good of a
particular group

The degree of certainty of
the evidence on which
action is taken

Disputed
facts

Fig. 2.4 The Ethical Grid (Seedhouse 1988 )

of health. The principles of autonomy and respecting people are also highly
appropriate to assistive technology, but that of serving needs fi rst may need to be
modifi ed or replaced.
2. The second layer is based on deontological theories. It focuses on duties and
motives, including promise-keeping, truth-telling, minimising harm and
benefi cence. It is intended to encourage the consideration of principles in moral
deliberations. However, there may be occasions when it is justifi able to weaken
or omit one or more of these principles, but the ethical justifi cation for doing this
should be clear.
3. The third layer is based on consequentialist theories. It considers the consequences
of proposed actions, both the long-term and indirect ones and the immediate
ones. The consequences are expressed in terms of increasing the following
goods: individual, social, of a particular group and of yourself. It should be noted
that this is equivalent to reducing the associated negative impacts. Additional
consequences could be added, for instance, increasing environmental goods or
distributive equality, though that is possibly implied by increasing the goods of a
particular group and the social good.
4. The fourth layer involves external considerations, including the wishes and legal
rights of others; the responsibility to justify action with external evidence; risks,
effectiveness and effi ciency of action; codes of practice; and the degree of
certainty of the evidence on which action is taken. It could also be useful to
include cultural and other specifi c factors of the environment in this layer.