1. What is a Profession?

2. Definitions ► ► “field” - a set of questions, a corpus of theory and knowledge, a social idea – can have more than one discipline in the same field (e.g., GIS and surveyors in their separate disciplines can work in the same field of “GIScience and Technology”) ► ► “discipline” – a certain way of being trained, certain skills, an academic conception (evidenced by journals, conferences) – GIS is a leading discipline within the field of “GIScience and Technology”

3. Definitions - cont. ► ► “profession” – cooperative practice evidenced by a group of people who act in ways that take into account how others act.

4. Unwin’s Definition of “Profession” ► ► Professionals are paid for the services they provide.   specialized knowledge   Not done by the average person. ► ► Professionals have a common interest, be it the law, the church or whatever. ► ► Professionals have accepted rules of conduct that helps guarantee that they will act “correctly.”

5. Class Exercise

6. Unwin: Profession - cont. ► ► Provides a guarantee of competence. ► ► Any profession should be recognized by other professions. ► ► Provision of professional development (PD) of its members at entry and their continuing professional development (CPD). ► ► Any profession should have a means of enforcing its rule of conduct and guarantee of competence.   Unwin: “Usually, this involves the threat of incompetence or unethical behaviour leading to the miscreant being 'struck off,’ with varying consequences for their future practice.”

7. Why Ethics of Concern for GIS? ► ► Vendors: warranty, user documentation transparency and ethics of selling systems ► ► Data providers: Standards and compliance, Copyright & IPR ► ► Researchers: veracity, scholarship, product endorsement (is it right to publish work that uses the intellectual achievements of others without acknowledgement?

8. Ethical Concerns - cont. ► ► Applications engineers: fitness and quality of solutions. ► ► Educators: education vs. training ► ► General public: access to technology and data.

9. Openshaw’s GIS “Crimes” ► ► Type 1 - GIS fails for whatever reason but is otherwise harmless. ► ► Type 2 - GIS use or misuse causes unnecessary and measurable harm to others. ► ► Type 3 - GIS is not used in areas where it might have been, and where it would have improved the quality of any decisions made. ► ► Type 4 - simply talking about GIS without actually doing it. Openshaw, S., 1993. Commentary: GIS “crime” and GIS “criminality.” Environment and Planning A, 25, 451-458.

10. Why a Code of Ethics? ► Deters unethical behavior ► Provides a support system for members ► Serves as an enabling document ► Acts as a basis for adjudicating disputes in law ► Enhances a profession’s reputation ► Acts as a source for public evaluation ► Aids with professional socialization Frankel, 1989

11. Challenges for GIS industry ► ► Differing notions of who we are accountable to? ► ► Locus of training in higher education, not with technical institutes? ► ► GIS grew up mostly in 1980s when regulation was unfashionable. ► ► Labor demand has exceeded supply. ► ► Widespread lack of appreciation of the problem. ► ► Several codes could be taken -- so which?