For some time now, philosophers, scientists, and intellectuals from different fields concern themselves over the nature of epistemology—the study of knowledge itself. The subject itself is a broad one, so they attempt to view and explain it through different perspectives. The study of knowledge can be presented according to its ethical considerations, the essence of what is considered useful information and what is not, and the likes. This means that many approaches can be made to learn more about the nature of knowledge.
What is interesting about epistemology is that, because it is the study of knowledge itself, its applicability in other fields is virtually endless. Epistemology, and its theories, can be used as guides to better understand the thought processes in some other fields of studies. In other times, epistemology can be used as a tool for applying the theoretical concepts in the real world. It can also be used as a means of shaping and forming a general idea that will be crucial in understanding the more advanced concepts in that particular study.
One of the fields in which epistemology can be applied is in the study of ethics, which is the field that concerns itself over the right and the wrong thing to do in a particular scenario. Being two branches of philosophy themselves, epistemology and ethics are interrelated in some ways. For one, knowing what is ethically acceptable can help shape the understanding of knowledge. Conversely, knowing the nature of knowledge itself can give insight to what is “good” or “bad” in a certain field. Thus, it can be said that epistemology and ethics go hand-in-hand in understanding a field of study, along with the practices associated with them.
With that said, there are certain instances in which epistemology is not fully applied in the realm of ethics. One such example, as Donna Riley asserts, is the field of ethics as applied to engineering practices. According to her journal article Hidden in Plain View: Feminists Doing Engineering Ethics, Engineers Doing Feminist Ethics, while it can be said that ethics in the field of engineering is well-defined, she observes that it does not tackle issues such as feminism. She first gives an overview of how the fields of ethics, engineering, and feminism are intertwined and fully developed over the years by citing, analyzing and discussing other pertinent studies. Next, she observes how efforts to integrate feminism into the realm of engineering were brought upon but were consequently deemed futile because of the nature of engineering itself. Lastly, she cites a film, Henry’s Daughters¸ and discusses how it tackles feminism according to an engineering perspective. Afterwards, she concludes that the lack of focus on feminism in ethics is due to the nature of epistemology in the society, and thus a change is needed in order to incorporate the values of feminism into engineering ethics so that it can be more applicable in the real world.
I, for one, find myself agreeing with what Riley said. There is something about the nature of epistemology that makes it coincide with the prevalent thinking of the modern times. After watching John Oliver’s discussion of how knowledge is unfairly disseminated in our society, I wondered if it was the case in feminism in engineering ethics as well. To understand better about this topic, perhaps it would be best if the nature of epistemology would first be discussed. Afterwards, how it applies to Riley’s topic of feminism and engineering ethics will be tackled.
The Nature of Epistemology
Riley argued that there is a certain bias about epistemology nowadays. She posits that it is more gravitated on the culture of the society. In other words, the general way of thinking largely influences the creation, procurement, and dissemination of knowledge. Therefore, in order to shift the ethics of engineering to a more feminist-aligned point of view, there is a need to redefine epistemology itself.
After watching John Oliver’s Scientific Studies, I find myself agreeing with this idea. In the show, Oliver explains that even though most of the information presented to us nowadays claim to be backed by scientific studies, it is not enough to give those enough credibility. For one, there are many analyses that can be employed in order to find information about a data such as p-hacking, but even those yield what can be completely useless evidence. In addition, the media can see a piece of scientific information and misinterpret it to the extent that it is appealing to viewers, even though it means twisting it a bit. In other words, many techniques to bend the truth are being employed just for the sake of attention and marketability. Therefore, people should double-check any information they might come across—it may turn out that the results are not scientifically valid, or the population sampled on is not statistically viable and thus the results turn out to be trash.
Aside from this message, there is also important information that can be derived from the talk—information presented to the public can be controlled according to what the society sees as acceptable. In other words, knowledge can be heavily biased, and what the public sees as truth may not necessarily be seen as scientifically acceptable. It is important to keep this in mind when discussing topics that can be seen as points of consternation such as feminism.
Epistemology, Feminism, and Ethics
According to her journal, Riley notes that feminism has been discussed in many studies about engineering ethics before, but they are touched upon just enough so that society sees it is acceptable. She also says that feminism has changed over the years—it is not just simply the question of gender, but also other topics that are pertinent to it such as race, orientation, and the like. The fact that feminism is not fully discussed in engineering circles gives testament to the fact it is still a topic that is a cause of controversy in the modern society. Furthermore, there is a widespread belief in the realm of engineering that it does not concern itself with concrete issues, instead preferring to focus on theoretical ones.
However, that should not be the case. While engineering ethics is derived from theory, it is now the high time to incorporate feminist ideas into it because it is applied to the modern world on a day-to-day basis. Feminism continues to grow by the day and concerns itself with topics so that the female sex can stay relevant in was once a male-dominated field. If engineering ethics really prides itself on being applicable in many areas, then the issues of feminism should also be applied into it. For that to happen, engineering ethics needs to be restructured by tackling a new approach into epistemology—one that is not swayed much by “androcentric” attitudes.
Conclusion
Epistemology, as a study of knowledge, can be applied to many fields in order to improve them. One such field is engineering ethics, wherein it can be used to integrate feminist perspectives. For that to happen, epistemology as a whole should be centered less on centering itself on aligning with culturally induced values and focus on the big picture: the role of ethics and how it can improve society as a whole.
Works Cited
LastWeekTonight. “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Scientific Studies (HBO)”. Online video clip. YouTube. YouTube, 8 May 2016. Web. 30 July 2016.
Riley, Donna. “Hidden in Plain View: Feminists Doing Engineering Ethics, Engineers Doing Feminist Ethics”. Science of Engineering Ethics 19 (2013): 189 – 206. Print.
