•A software engineer is hired to develop banking software, but, during a slow pe
ID: 351212 • Letter: #
Question
•A software engineer is hired to develop banking software, but, during a slow period, the employer asks the engineer to develop computer graphics for slot machines in a gambling casino. Slot machines are legal, but many people consider them to be deceptive and unethical as they do not reveal the true odds of winning. Casinos themselves are designed with a distracting, maze-like atmosphere. Many gamblers become addicted to betting and lose everything.
•The software engineer does not want to put his creative effort into promoting gambling, so what should he do?
Explanation / Answer
It is a question of ethics. Whether the engineer should complete his contract or not depends upon the values that he has. He does not want to promote gambling and his concerns are valid as far as the matter goes. Yet, ethically speaking, his actions would not be affecting gambling or promoting it in any way necessary. He has no part to play and is not committing any the ethical misconducts. Therefore, according to my point of view, there is nothing wrong for him to complete the job he is requested for.
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