Ethical Decision-Making Ability and Cognitive Reasoning among Final Year Engineering Students in a Higher Education Institution in Malaysia: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Ethical decision-making is an important element in engineering profession. The objective of this study is to examine final year engineering students’ ethical decision-making ability and cognitive reasoning skills. The research questions aim to investigate the considerations and general steps that students go through in a decision-making process. This study gathered qualitative data through written decisions and interviews. Twelve engineering students in a Malaysian private engineering school were asked to read two ethical vignettes and write down their decisions. This was followed by semi-structured interview questions, in alignment with the steps in an ethical decision-making model, to gauge the students’ reasoning behind their decisions. The interview transcripts were analyzed and common themes that influence the ethical decision- making of students were identified. The analysis focused on ethical sensitivity and ethical judgement of students. Students demonstrated a decent level of ethical sensitivity emphasizing professional responsibility but their ethical judgment varied according to case study. In general, students were able to identify underlying issue and affected parties, but did not give much thought to potential course of action. This study draws reflection on engineering students’ flow of thinking and cognitive reasoning processes when given a situation to deal with. The findings of this study stress the importance of engineering schools integrating relevant case studies or true accounts of engineering practices to develop ethical decision-making ability and cognitive reasoning among future engineers. This would prepare the engineering students to face the ethical challenges in their profession.