Unintended Consequences when the Engineering Design Team is Noninclusive: An Exploration of the Literature

Abstract

Accessibility and equity have become increasingly important in recent years. Inclusive Engineering Design is an approach to design that “enables and draws from the full range of human diversity” [1]. Through showcasing a number of examples, this paper demonstrated the need for engineers to embrace inclusive design principles in all fields of engineering. The examples used in the paper centre around Urban Planning and Housing, Unconscious Bias in Artificial Intelligence and Automotive Engineering – testing the car design. Urban Planning compared a housing development in Brazil with that of one in Vienna. The one in Brazil was a re-housing design project that took no input from the residents that were to be relocated from the favellas, resulting in their lives being upended. Vienna’s housing project was co-designed with the residents to ensure a better quality of life for all. Section III on Unconscious Bias in Artificial Intelligence showcased a range of examples where lack of diversity on the design team had a detrimental effect on people. People of colour were labelled as gorillas by Google’s photo application; gender classification worked best on white males and worst on darker females; criminal risk assessment software rated black defendants as 77% more likely of committing a future violent crime and cardiovascular disease (CVD) was not being captured in women using Al, as CVD presents differently in males and females [2]. Test dummies in Automotive Engineering have traditionally been designed using dimensions and physique of a male body. Because a woman’s body is biologically different to that of a man, women aew therefore 17% more likely to die in a car crash than a man and 47% more likely to be seriously injured. Pregnant women and the older generation fair even worse. Underrepresented groups in engineering, such as females, people of colour and those with disabilities continue to be affected by the design choices that were and are being made by engineers worldwide. This paper highlights why design methodologies need to change to be more inclusive. While the consequences of the designs showcased in the paper are unintended, they still have a resonating impact that goes beyond their intended use.