The social ascription of obligations to engineers

Discovering obligations that are ascribed to them by others is potentially an important element in the development of the moral imagination of engineers. Moral imagination cannot reasonably be developed by contemplating oneself and one's task alone: there must be some element of discovering the expectations of people one could put at risk. In practice it may be impossible to meet ascribed obligations if they are completely general and allow no exceptions--for example if they demand an unlimited duty to avoid harm. But they can still serve to modify engineers' prior ethics, for example by limiting a purely utilitarian approach to deciding who should bear risk and how much risk they should bear. Ascribed obligations can also give engineers insight into the public reaction to risks that arise from engineered systems, and the consequent expectations that the public have about how much protection is desirable and where the responsibility for this protection lies. This article analyses the case for taking ascribed obligations seriously, and reviews some of the obligations that have been ascribed in the aftermath of recent engineering failures. It also proposes ways in which ascribed obligations could be used in engineers' moral development.     

The Moral Contours of Empathy

Morally contoured empathy is a form of reasonable partiality essential to the healthy care of dependents. It is critical as an epistemic aid in determining proper moral responsiveness; it is also, within certain richly normative roles and relationships, itself a crucial constitutive mode of moral connection. Yet the achievement of empathy is no easy feat. Patterns of incuriosity imperil connection, impeding empathic engagement; inappropriate empathic engagement, on the other hand, can result in self-effacement. Impartial moral principles and constraints offer at best meager protection against these perils, and hence serve poorly in securing morally contoured empathy. More nuanced and practical guidance should be sought in normatively substantive conceptions of our roles and relationships and their defining moral stakes. These, joined with more abstract moral tools, can facilitate rich, narratively textured interpretations of moralitys demands. While the content of our normative conceptions must be continually debated, engaging in this debate is vital to the achievement of proper empathy, and thus to effective, respectful, morally healthy care of dependents.This paper was originally presented at the conference on Reasonable Partiality at the Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, October 22–24, 2003. I wish to thank all those present for stimulating discussion. Special thanks go to Bert Musschenga, who organized the conference, and who has provided insightful feedback on this paper. Warm thanks as well to Brenda Almond and Bernie Rollin for lively exchanges on the issues addressed here and to Nancy Sherman for sharing with me an ongoing fascination with, and her own fantastic work on, empathy. Comments from an anonymous reviewer for the journal were challenging and helpful. Finally, I wish to express gratitude beyond normal bounds to Maggie Little both for her generosity, keen insight, and artful intervention at key points in this essays evolution and for her ground-breaking work on deontic pluralism that deeply influences the position I frame here.     

Grace and Imagination: From Fear to Freedom

Creative use of our imagination is essential if we are to live a vibrant life. Although our use of imagination is often blocked by various fears, D. W. Winnicott's insights into play, aggression, and the use of transitional objects open up paths towards greater freedom. The sacred texts, symbols, and liturgies of our religious traditions can then become the toys which engage us in profound and re-creating soul play. Through grace and the evocative examples of our teachers, we can find ways to use our imagination more freely to deepen our spiritual life and psychological wholeness.     

Project HOPE: Implementing Sensory Experiences for Suicide Prevention in a Native American Community

Suicide remains a significant problem for Native American populations; however, culturally appropriate interventions are lacking (Suicide Prevention Resource Center, 2011 Suicide Prevention Resource Center . ( 2011 ). Suicide Among American Indians/Alaska Natives. Retrieved from http://www.sprc.org/library/ai.an.facts.pdf  [Google Scholar]). Occupational therapy practitioners can aid in suicide prevention and intervention (American Occupational Therapy Association, 2005). This study presents a culturally appropriate program and research project following a community-based participatory research design that explores the impact of a sensory curriculum for suicide prevention on Native American youth. The perceptions of the young peoples' sensory experiences are explored. Evidence from the study demonstrates the value of exploring the use of occupational therapy intervention in Native American communities to address significant health concerns.     

Occupational Therapists' Experience Concerning Occupational Performance in Adults With Asperger Syndrome

Persons with Asperger Syndrome often seem to have difficulty performing everyday occupations. This study aimed to describe occupational therapists' experience concerning abilities to occupational performance among adults with Asperger Syndrome. Data were collected in interviews with eight occupational therapists and analyzed using a qualitative method. Results showed that clients with Asperger Syndrome often possess abilities but seem to have difficulties knowing when, where, and how they should use them. The ability to adapt behavior in accordance with cues from the environment was identified as the core category. Environment plays a major role in how these persons interact in different situations.     

Perceived Occupational Concerns and Sensory Processing Patterns of Mothers in a Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)-to-Work Program

In this study, the authors examine the perceived occupational concerns, typical daily routines, and sensory processing of mothers in a mandatory Temporary Assistance for Needy Families return to work program. Participants were five female members of a transitional work program for single parents with mental illness. The Canadian Occupational Performance Measure and the Adult Sensory Profile were administered. The study found that the most frequently identified occupational problems were leisure and self-care. All participants scored as having at least one atypical sensory processing pattern. Future research should investigate the efficacy of an occupational therapy intervention on this population's return to employment.     

Contextualizing Nanotechnology Education: Fostering a Hybrid Imagination in Aalborg,Denmark

In the context of worldwide economic and environmental crisis it is increasingly important that nanotechnology, genomics, media engineering and other fields of ‘technoscience’ with immense societal relevance are taught in ways that promote social responsibility and that educational activities are organized so that science and engineering students will be able to integrate the ‘contextual knowledge’ they learn into their professional, technical–scientific identities and forms of competence. Since the 1970s, teaching programmes in science, technology and society for science and engineering have faded away at many universities and have been replaced by courses in economic and commercial aspects, or entrepreneurship and/or ethical and philosophical issues. By recounting our recent efforts in contextualizing nanotechnology education at Aalborg University in Denmark, we consider a socio-cultural approach to contextual learning, one that is meant to contribute to a greater sense of social responsibility on the part of scientists and engineers. It is our contention that the social, political and environmental challenges facing science and engineering in the world today require the fostering of what we have come to call a ‘hybrid imagination’, mixing scientific–technical skills with a sense of social responsibility or global citizenship, if science and engineering are to help solve social problems rather than create new ones. Three exemplary cases of student project work are discussed: one on raspberry solar cells, which connected nanotechnology to the global warming debate, and two in which surveys on the public understanding of nanotechnology were combined with a scientific–technical project.     

Preliminary Evaluation of Sleepwise Program for Children With Sleep Disturbance and Developmental Delay

Sleep disturbances are very prevalent in children with developmental delay. Parental-assisted behavioral strategies have been used effectively in school-aged children; however, multimodal treatment for preschool-aged children is lacking. The current study is a preliminary investigation of the effectiveness of a parent group program called Sleepwise designed for young children with developmental delay and incorporating behavioral, communicative, and sensory strategies. Six parents attended three workshop sessions and implemented individualized treatment plans. Initial results revealed significant posttreatment reductions in child sleep disturbances and behavioral problems, with high treatment acceptability ratings by parents. Outcomes were generally maintained at 1-month follow-up.     

Latency and Response Complexity

Two experiments were conducted in which the latency of movement responses of varying complexity was investigated. The complexity of an arm sweep movement was varied by (a) increasing the extent of movement from 6 in. to 18 in., (b) reversing the movement, and (c) by making two or three pauses in an on-going movement. The results only partially supported the hypothesis that the latency of a response is related to the complexity of the movement pattern. Specifically RT was longer when the response involved significant changes in the temporal organization of the movement pattern.     

From One to Two: Can Visual Feedback Improve the Light Touch Effects on Postural Sway?

The postural control is improved by implicit somatosensory information from lightly touching a rigid bar or explicit visual information about the postural sway. Whether these two additional sources provided at the same time further reduce the postural sway is still unknown. Participants stood on a force plate as quiet as possible lightly touching the bar while received or not visual feedback of the center of pressure position on a monitor screen. Postural sway reduced similarly with the light touch regardless of the additional visual feedback. The findings suggested that providing explicit visual feedback of the center of pressure does not increase the light touch effects on the postural sway. The importance of the implicit somatosensory information on postural control is discussed.