Importance of Ethics in Civil Engineering and Surveying: Professional Development

Running head: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 1 1
School Of Civil Engineering and Surveying
First Name Last Name
University of Portsmouth

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 1 2
Ethics forms a critical aspect in every profession with bearings on social, political and economic
implications within and without. Similarly, in the field of civil engineering and surveying, such
implications cannot be neglected since it encompasses a variety of careers interrelated and
working best in liaison with other fields of studies, profession and career development.
Ethics refers to a set of concepts that guide us in defining what behavior helps or harms sentient
creatures hence guiding our professional and working relations ("Ethics and Professional
Standards", 2016). Ethics can be composed into 3 areas namely: Meta-Ethics, Normative Ethics,
and Applied Ethics.
Meta-Ethics concerns the hypothetical implication and allusion of moral preposition and ways of
determining the respective truth values. Normative Ethics concerns applied ways of determining
a moral sequence of feat/ response. Applied Ethics concerns what an individual is obliged to do
in particular domain of action or circumstances.
Professional ethics incorporates the individual, administrative and corporate principles of
behavior expected of professionals ("Conduct policy", 2016). Components of professional ethics
include but not limited to: honesty, respectfulness, accountability, loyalty, integrity, objectivity
and transparency. Locally, a number of bodies have been formulated to ensure and update on
ethical provisions in various professions such as The Universal Ethical Code for Scientists, the
UK Research Integrity Office (UKRIO), The National Research Ethics Service (NRES), ESRC
Research Ethics Framework, The Engineering Council etc. The engineering Council is solely the
regulatory body for engineering profession in the UK. These bodies not only regulate but have
the mandate to license individuals and supervise their professional practice hence ensuring
adherence to the set ethics (Seresht & Fayek, 2015). According to the works of Gorse, Johnston,
& Pritchard (2012), among the various career paths in the construction industry, the following
careers perform roles such as:
i. Plumbers responsible for installation of pipes for water in both commercial and
residential spaces.
ii. Civil engineers responsible for planning, designing, and supervise construction and
maintenance of infrastructures and building structures.
iii. Site managers including project coordinators, schedulers, construction assistants,
project manager, safety director, construction supervisor, contract administrator,
estimator, cost estimation coordinator, construction foreman etc. a site manager