Professional Context of ICT INFO3020

1
Professional Context of ICTINFO3020

• The need for professionalism
• Lecture 2

2
Introduction

• Why professional ethics
• Characteristics of professions
• Professional profiles
• Is computing a profession?
• Professional relationships
• Conclusion

3
Why Professional Ethics

• The terms profession and professional are often
  used to refer to strongly differentiated
  professions.
• The role of computer professional is not strongly
  differentiated.
• You acquire powers and responsibilities by virtue
  of being an employee of an organisation, not by
  virtue of being a computer professional.
• The efficacy of individual acting in employment
  role is another factor have to be taken into
  account in ethical analysis.

4
Characteristics of Professions

• Mastery of an Esoteric body of knowledge
• Autonomy
• Formal organisation that controls admission to
  the profession and sets standards for practice
• Code of ethics
• Fulfil important social function or are
  committed to a social good

5
Is Computing a Profession? Are Computer
Professionals Professional?

• Most computer professionals must master an
  esoteric body of knowledge to do what they do.
• Computer professional are not allowed to do or
  required to do any thing that an ordinary person
  cannot do.
• There is no single organisation to which all
  members of the profession must belong
• ACM and BCS as well as others have codes
• Computing supports a variety of social functions
  but is not itself a social function.

6
Should software engineers be licensed? What
are the advantages? The drawbacks?
7
Professionalism

• Power of the Software Engineer
• Work influences many lives
• Responsibility to all society, organisation,
  profession
• Personal credibility
• Avoid problems (lawsuits)
• Enhance promote knowledge
• Self-interest (financial gain)

8
Professional relationships

• Employer employee
• Contractual relationship fulfils the requirements
  of the categorical imperative
• Client professional
• Contractual
• Disparity of knowledge/expertise

9
Professional relationships

• Client professional
• Agency do what is requested
• Paternalism all decision transferred to the
  professional
• Fiduciary client makes decisions on the basis
  of information provided by the professional

10
Professional relationships

• Society professional
• To a certain extent governed by law and a social
  contract
• Right to practice on the basis that such practice
  will serve society or as a minimum not harm it
• Professional professional
• Adherence to standards

11
Professionalism

• Professionalism is not just about adhering to
  codes of practice, rules and laws but also having
  your individual ethical and moral beliefs
  consistent with societal expectations