Teaching Professional Ethics to Chemistry Undergraduates
Frank E. Budenholzer

Table 1. Chemical Ethics Part One: General Ethics

Week Content

  1. Introduction to the "case analysis method."
  2. The basis of ethical decision-making.
  3. Student presentations of case studies.
  4. Student presentations of case studies.
  5. Student presentations of case studies.
  6. Student presentation of cases studies.
  7. Reflection and analysis
  8. (Holiday makeup.)

Table 2. Chemical Ethics Part Two: Science and Technology Ethics (Team teaching by four professors of the College of Science and Engineering)

Week Content and Instructor
1 & 2 Bio-ethics
Department of Biology (Prof. Ching-Hsia Chen)
Case (1) Surrogate motherhood
Case (2) Cloning
Case (3) Euthanasia
3 & 4 Information and intellectual property
Department of Applied Mathematics (Prof. Wen-Hsiang Huang)
Case (1) Cheating on homework
Case (2) Pornography on the web
Case (3) Intellectual property rights--software
5 & 6 Chemistry and Ethics
Department of Chemistry (Prof. Sung-Nung Lee)
Case (1) Chemistry and our planet
Case (2) Ever present plastics
Case (3) What happens when the oil runs out?
7 & 8 Research ethics
Department of Chemistry (Prof. Frank Budenholzer)
Case (1) Plagiarism of a research plan
Case (2) Misuse of research funds
Case (3) How many papers to publish?
(Or other cases studies of ref. [8].)

Table 3. Cases Selected by Chemistry Students, 1998 and 1999


1998 Academic year, Fall Semester

The application by Bayer Chemical to construct a toluene diisocyanate plant in Taichung

Security on the university computer bulletin board

Euthanasia

The Lincoln Mansions--building collapse on slope land

Medical confidentiality and abortion

Husband working overseas and family responsibility

Abolition of legal prostitution in Taipei

An evening fling--short term sexual relationships

1999 Academic year, Fall Semester

Euthanasia

Accident in the nuclear processing plant in Japan

"Doctors' Home" Collapse of a building in Taipei in the 9-21 earthquake

The fourth nuclear power plant--to build or not to build?

Formosa plastics' mercury contaminated waste

Husband working overseas and family responsibility

Illegal amphetamine manufacture at a Taiwan University Hospital lab

"A Civil Action" Film on a chemical waste dump in Massachusetts, USA

Table 4. Student Concerns and Attitudes

The Chemical Industry

  1. Strong support of the need for continued technological and industrial development.
  2. Mistrust of industry's environmental policies.
  3. Ambivalent feelings about the ethical role of the individual in industry.
  4. Concern about balancing a career and family life.

Research Ethics

  1. Recognition of the value of basic research.
  2. Concern about the attitudes of research professors in directing graduate research--proper credit for work done.

Meta-Ethics

  1. Difficulty in discussing the basis for ethical decision-making.
  2. Difficulty in seeing any connection between traditional Chinese classics (Confucianism) or religious belief (Buddhism, Christianity) and ethical behavior.
  3. Working to find a balance between personal autonomy and group/family belonging.

Young Adult Concerns

  1. Concern about future relationship with spouse and family harmony.
  2. Interest in life/death questions, but perceived as somewhat remote.