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    Podcast Script1 2

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    2 views3 pages

    Podcast Script1 2

    Uploaded by

    elyoblliw

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    ENGR201 Professional Practice and Responsibility ©

    Lesson 1 Podcast Transcript: What is a Profession?

    Professional System and the Role of Professionals in Society


    In this podcast, we will discuss two aspects of the professional system – the need for a
    professional system and the role of professionals in society.

    Need for a Professional System


    The main question we face, when considering a professional system, is why we need a
    professional system. Given the level of education and skill they possess, shouldn’t
    professionals be allowed to practice their profession independently? Why does the
    government have to look over the shoulder of the professional? Our reading for this
    week engages with this question directly. Alan Firmage makes the point that “all
    professions are moral enterprises that involve concerns beyond the application of
    technical principles.” Although professions are organized around technical practices and
    actions, the actions of individuals are not just limited to technical principles but involve
    significant moral content. In other words, the choices that professionals have to make in
    their work are not just about technical aspects, but have moral and ethical dimensions.
    Any choice a professional makes has impacts on people in society. These impacts
    could be good or bad depending on the nature of the choice. Thus, the objective of a
    professional system is to recognize the moral and ethical nature of professional work
    and create conditions, whereby member professionals will be guided to make ethical
    choices that work towards the benefit of society.
    The moral aspects of a profession, in turn, direct our attention to values that underpin
    professional actions. These values can be understood along two dimensions.
    • First, professional values are those that guide the nature of professional relations
    with clients, employers, and fellow professionals. This include aspects such as
    values of honesty, integrity, loyalty and responsibility.
    • A second aspect of professional values relate to societal leadership that relate to
    how the professional should relate to the values that underpin a particular society or
    nation they work within. These relate to such aspects as law, prejudice, and safety.

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    All other values are considered personal values, and should generally be separated
    from professional values. Mixing professional and personal values is a tricky thing, and
    should require judgment on the part of the professional. Some level of mixing is
    considered OK, but in other circumstances, mixing personal and professional values
    would be considered a “conflict of interest” and should be avoided. For example,
    wearing a religious symbol is not usually considered in appropriate display of personal
    values, but giving jobs to people of the same faith could be considered conflict of
    interest or discrimination, depending on the professional system.
    Despite the recognition of the value of a professional system, there exists considerable
    variation in the nature and actions of professional systems around the world. These
    variations are the result of local circumstances in different jurisdictions. These
    circumstances can be related to differing social, economic, and political priorities. Alan
    Firmage in our reading suggests that “how well professions meet their moral obligations
    determine the freedom of the enterprise.” Thus, if in some places, professionals are
    considered to be irresponsible of their commitments to society’s welfare, then in such
    situations, professions can expect a much heavier control by government over a
    profession’s obligations. For example, in USA, the professional system (depends on
    which state you are talking about) places fewer legal requirements for professionals
    (especially engineers). In fact, in many states of USA, professional registration is not
    required to practice the engineering profession. On the contrary, some European
    countries exert heavy legal requirements for the practice of the engineering profession.
    Canada, typically, exerts a higher control over the practice of the profession than USA.

    Role of Professions in Society


    Professions and professionals play an important role in society. As we have mentioned
    earlier, professionals contribute directly to public welfare through their work. Given this
    important contribution they make, professions play an important role and professionals
    are keen to have an important position in society. Professions are a powerful
    occupational group in society. A key reason behind the power that professions have in
    society stems from the specialized knowledge they possess as a collective. This
    knowledge is valued especially, because ordinary people cannot acquire this knowledge
    by reading a book in a library. They need to get admission into what is often very
    competitive professional schools, and then obtain a license to practice the profession.
    Given these barriers, a profession is considered to be unattainable by most ordinary
    people.
    The power that a profession has in society translates directly into the higher social
    status that professionals have in society. While an individual professional may not be

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    the most financially successful, their status is usually disproportionate to their means.
    This higher status is the result of two factors.
    • First, society values professionals for the skill and expertise they possess in
    contributing directly to public welfare.
    • Second, society values professionals, because their technical expertise can guide
    important decisions that society can make collectively. Technical expertise is
    relevant because of the scientific basis that it brings in solving global problems. In
    doing so, it provides an alternative to the messiness of decision-making of politicians
    and political leaders in democracies.

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