Republic of the Philippines

BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY

College of Engineering, Architecture and Fine Arts
BATSTATEU ALANGILAN, Alangilan, Batangas City www.batstate-
u.edu.ph Tel. No. (043) 425-0139 loc. 118/2121

JOHN KEVIN D. RAMIRO

JENNY M. JOSUE

CASE STUDY

A. “Would You Rather” Dilemmas

1. Runaway Train
Imagine you’re the conductor of a train that you suddenly lost control of and is
about to crash into a group of five innocent bystanders totally unaware of their impending doom
unless you throw a switch that can divert the train to another track. But in this case, it would run
over an unsuspecting man who’s sleeping on the rails.

Question:
Would you be able to throw the switch? Explain.
Yes, I will be able to throw the switch to change tracks to the right because hitting one
man instead of five is a good decision for me because one of the primary principles of
utilitarianism is to do the most positive thing that affects the most people. In this case, the train
will bring more suffering to a larger number of people if it continues down its path towards the
five men. Killing the five will not only hurt them, but will also bring suffering to their loved ones.
If the train hits only one man, the suffering is much less all around. I believe this to mean that
the ideal solution would be to bring happiness to as many people in the group as possible. 

2. A Trolley out of Control

A street car is out of control and spending towards a group of seven people. Being
on an overhead footbridge, you’re not in danger. You see a big bulky guy standing next to you
and you realize that if you push the man onto the track below the footbridge it’ll stop the trolley.
However, the man will surely die. On the other hand, you will save seven innocent people.

Question:
Would you sacrifice one life for seven? Explain.
No, I will not push a guy to his death to save a group of seven people. I’ve come
up with this decision using the seven steps for moral reasoning. If you read between the lines of
this situation, you will notice that the death of the seven people is not certain yet so there's still a
slim hope that they will survive the impact of the car, and in the first place, the existence of a
footbridge is for the safety of the people, it is used to separate the pedestrians from the vehicles
on the road. So there shouldn’t be pedestrians on the road when there's a footbridge, I can only
assume that the seven people are jaywalking. Moreover, If I decided to sacrifice the big bulky
guy and push him to his death then what I committed is undeniably murder and I will go to jail.
My choice of not sacrificing the big bulky guy manifests my principle that everyone has the right
to live, ending one's life to save seven lives in this kind of situation is not ethical for me and I
also believe that everyone is responsible for their own life. I am not saying that the seven people
don't deserve to live however, I believe from the bottom of my heart that I cannot do something
so cruel to someone like pushing him to his death.

3. A Judge’s Dilemma
You are the judge at a trial of a bank robber who is in fact innocent and you know
it for sure. But at the moment, the enemies of the accused have kidnapped your six-year old
daughter and demand that you convict the robber in return for her freedom. You have no idea
where they’re keeping her and the police can’t figure it out as well. You are nervous wreck and
can’t help but think that the kidnappers will or already abusing your child.

Question:
Would you convict the innocent man to save your daughter?
It’s hard to decide on two things you know are hard. As a judge I will not do or insist
that the defendant is bad because I am a judge on our promise that we will put each other to act
in justice no matter what happens but as a father it will break my heart to see my son in
distress . So I will choose to save my child because the defendant can still be acquitted and
disqualified at the next trial of the judgment but my child’s life is more important I will not let
my own blood and flesh be lost just because of the confusing decision making.

4. Your Best friend’s Wedding

You’ve been invited to your best friend’s big day 2 hrs. before the ceremony is
supposed to start. You notice your friend’s future spouse sneaking out of some storage room
with another guest. They both look thoroughly to shovel and you realize that they’re having an
affair and here comes the dilemma. If you tell your friend what you found out, their perfect will
be completely ruined. At the same time, how can you allow your friend to marry somebody
who’s unfaithful.

Question:
What would you do in such a situation?
First I will confirm or find evidence that my friend’s future spouse is indeed
having an affair, considering that there is only 2 hours left before the wedding, I will make haste
to take photos of my friend’s future spouse having an affair and use those photos to tell my
friend. If I realize that I cannot gather evidence in time then I will still tell my friend that his/her
soon to be spouse is unfaithful. The reason I want to gather evidence for my best friend when I
could have gone and told him/her in the first place is so that my best friend will have the upper
hand when she/he decides to file a civil complaint against the person that his/her future spouse
is having an affair with. I’m also sure that my best friend will find it difficult to believe me if I
suddenly tell him/her all this information especially when there's only 2 hours left before she/he
marries her/his future spouse. I will definitely feel disappointed and frustrated for my best friend
while telling him/her what I found out but I’m sure I will not regret telling my best friend the
truth.

5. Reporting Robin Hood

You’ve witnessed a crime. A man robbed a bank and got away with it. However,
he doesn’t keep the money for himself, he instead donates it to an orphanage that’s on the verge
of bankruptcy. After his donation, the orphanage’s management can buy clothes, books,
medicine and food for the kids. Well, you know who committed the crime but you also know
that if you go to the police, the money will most likely be returned to the bank and the orphans
won’t get what they desperately need.
Question:
What would you do in such a situation?
I would report him to the authorities because he is taking money from people who
may have worked for it. I would make a lot of money and donate back to the poor. I believe this
is the right thing to do because if you take money from the bank you might take away someone’s
life savings and they might become poor as well. If you earn money yourself and give it to the
poor it is a much better decision.

6. A Car crash and a killed Pedestrian

You’re on your way home one evening when you get into an accident with
another car. Even worse, you also hit and killed a pedestrian. However, as you are about to get
out of your car, the driver of the other vehicle, a shot woman in tears runs towards you. Having
heard her hysterical account of the event, you realized that the woman is absolutely convinced
that it was her who killed the pedestrian even though you know that you were responsible.
There’s nobody around just the two of you. You understand that the person found guilty will of
course be sent to prison. Knowing that,

Question:
Are you ready to own up to it? Explain.
Yes, I am willing to take responsibility for the consequences of my actions. I don’t think I
can live my life peacefully knowing that the woman is in jail when it should have been me. I may
be free from prison physically but I feel that the guilt will slowly eat my conscience and
eventually leave me troubled for the rest of my life. I’d rather spend a few years of my life in
prison and also, this incident can be considered vehicular manslaughter (minor crime) so I will
only be spending a few years in prison. I also want to bring justice or to honor the life that I
killed by being punished rightfully. Telling the truth that I killed the pedestrian even though I
will end up in jail is an ethical decision for me. Kantian theory plays a role in my decision since
I think that doing my duty by telling the truth and always upholding the law is the most ethical
way for me to live my life.

7. Family or Money
Imagine you’re standing on the bank of a rushing mountain river during a flood.
The rapids are pulling your significant other, your family member and a briefcase with five
million dollars in it underwater.

Question:
Who or what will you save?
I will save my family because it is my family / relatives. They cannot be replaced. You
can earn money if you have no money but no family. If our families are lost we cannot bring
them back. So I chose to save my family. Money cannot buy a person's life because life is really
the most important thing of all.

B. Responsible Conduct of Research and Participation

Scientists and educators have a duty to obey rules and regulations regarding the
responsible conduct of research and ethical participation in the activities of their department,
laboratory, or company. For publicly supported research, this means adhering to both
institutional and federal rules in making expenditures, and acting in a manner that recognizes
the importance of spending taxpayers’ money wisely, and with as little waste as possible.
 Research support is not an entitlement. In the course of working within a company, a
national laboratory, or a university department, there are also issues of ethics and fairness,
which should govern day-to-day behavior. In all of these arenas, individuals may be
confronted with difficult choices. This is especially important in the context of personnel
decisions.

8. Research Management
Many universities have rules about uses of research funding, research involving live
subjects, and other areas with ethical content. In order to ensure that faculty are familiar with
these rules, they are required to complete a set of online tests. At a faculty meeting, one faculty
member complained about the time the certification took, and volunteered to give the test
answers to any other faculty member who had not already taken the certification exams.

Questions:
 What should the meeting chair have done?
The meeting chair should thoroughly explain and discuss the importance of the
online tests to his/her faculty members so that they can understand the purpose of that test
and why they have to complete it. If I were the meeting chair, I would remind the faculty
members that as a researcher we should set ourselves as a good example for future
researchers and we should be systematic as much as possible, as a researcher we should
pay great attention to detail and we cannot afford to be lax in anything related to our job
such as taking these tests. Tests involving ethics are important since research typically
requires a lot of collaboration and coordination among many people from various fields
and institutions. Being aware of ethical standards promotes the values that are necessary
for collaborative work.
After telling the faculty members the importance of passing the online test, the
meeting chair should reject the proposal of the faculty member about giving the test
answers and he/she should encourage everyone to do their best to pass the test instead
while assuring them that he/she will do her/his best to speed up the certification process.

 If you were a faculty member at this meeting, what would you have done?
I would calmly share my opinion and thoughts about the online test and voice out
my disapproval of his/her suggestion on giving the test answers. I will tell him/her that
giving test answers will not help the team in the long run instead it will just lower our
morale and commitment. I will also tell all the faculty members present in the meeting that
these online tests can be our motivation to study the rules related to ethics which I think is
crucial when we research live subjects.

 Are online certification tests a good way to inform faculty about all of the research
rules?
Yes, the test itself is important to expand the knowledge of the researchers and to
inform them of the essential rules and regulations when handling research involving
humans or animals. The test will also help them to know how to consume research funds in
a reasonable manner. I think online tests are appropriate nowadays because of the ongoing
pandemic, conducting the test online will help stop the spread of Covid 19.

 What is the difference between this faculty member’s behavior and an

undergraduate who gets the answers to a test in advance and provides them to his
friends?
I think there is only a minor distinction when it comes to the two of them. The
action of the faculty member can bring harm to the research team, if the faculty members
got a certificate through means of cheating then the ethical values which a researcher
should always uphold may be forgotten or ignored, which would cause a discrepancy to
 his/her research. While the undergraduate may also develop a behavior similar to that of
the faculty member in the future which is also problematic itself.

9. Conflict of Interest
You are in a subfield of physics that is financially strapped. You are asked to do a
technical review of an experiment, which is not directly the same as one you have proposed
but if it is not funded, yours is likely to be (or vice-versa).

Questions:
 Should you refuse to participate in the review?
 Why or why not?

Answer:
If I am in that position, I would not refuse to participate in the review. Whether the
outcome is for me or not, I should be grateful and respect the result. And as a part of that
review, I should be good-sportsmanship because not all the time I can bring home the bacon. I
also have to be grateful for others' victories. Celebrating the success of others is not a lack of
your personality, but it is an honor of your personality. Your cooperation reflects your
character.

C. Educational Concerns
Ethics in science are primarily learned informally through mentors and by observing the
behavior of those around us. For many, our experiences as undergraduates and graduate
students is the first time we encounter any ethical questions specifically related to science.
Issues involving data collection, authorship, and collaboration might easily be encountered the
first time a student participates in a summer research program.
Ethical issues relevant to undergraduates also often involve faculty and university
administrators. Conflicts that involve students can be magnified when there are imbalances in
experience, status, or power.
It is important to be conscious of both the role that senior scientists have in educating
students about scientific ethics and the relative lack of power of undergraduates in the academic
environment. For students, it may be helpful to learn and discuss ethical standards before
encountering them firsthand. Below, we include two scenarios relevant to undergraduate
concerns. There are also issues that have been grouped under this heading which pertain to
activities within an academic department.

10. Reporting Violations and Plagiarism

You are a faculty mentor for a graduate student in your department. The student is
taking some classes in another department that requires written essays. He asks you to read his
essay before he submits it. You routinely google his work and discover that large parts have
been lifted, verbatim, from the web with no quotation marks or citations.

Questions:
 What should you do?
I will tell this student what I found out about his written essay and instruct him to
put proper citations on his essays. I will also inform this student that using someone else's
idea or work as your own without acknowledging their work can be considered plagiarism
and it's punishable by law. I will then ask him/her why he did not give credits to the original
source and whatever his reason is, I will tell this student that I will be willing to support
his/her studies by giving him feedbacks on his works anytime, so there will be no reason for
him to steal other people's idea/work.
  Is there a way to monitor this student’s future behavior without irreparably
damaging his career?
For now I will teach him how to properly cite his sources and I will also tell him
to use plagiarism checkers before submitting his works. I don’t think there is a way to
monitor him in the future once he graduates but as his current faculty mentor, I will make
sure that I will make him develop the hobby of creating his work with originality and teach
him how to avoid plagiarism, so that he will not commit plagiarism or do something similar
to this in the future.
11. Whistle Blowing
A graduate student has been working in a lab for a year on what she hopes will be her
Ph.D. dissertation research. She has been troubled for the last several months by the possibility
that her advisor may be manipulating data used in his publications. This past week, she has
just discovered what she believes to be incontrovertible evidence that some of his published
data had in fact been fabricated.

Questions:
 What should she do?
 With whom should she discuss the issue, if anyone?
 Is there a designated person at your institution to deal with such issues?
Answer:
As an author, I will pursue not to drop the issue of plagiarism. I will obtain a lawyer to
defend and proclaim my rights. I do have a right to sue a plagiarist because I am a victim of
plagiarizing my works. The issue must be held and be given a focus for its serious offense. The
credibility and the hard work of the author must give attention, acknowledgement and not be
ignored. There would also be consequences if this issue was neglected. If the issue will only be
passed over in the department then, they are ignoring the capabilities of other authors who
should be given an appreciation. But if the issue will be faced and be given justice, it shows that
there is fairness. And they are acknowledging a person who really deserves it because of its
capabilities. There is no fairness to claim the results because he is not the one who works hard
and finds a solution. And I was not mentioned as an author in the publication. Also, he does not
have any consent from me to publish the resolutions. Defining the word fair means being honest
and trustworthy in the work field in the agreement of rules or regulations. And it does not make
any form of cheating that you personally meet your satisfaction from others' efforts. In the case
study, the whistleblower is the employee who makes complaints. He has the right to object to
publishing and to fight for his work.

D. Data Acquisition
Testing of scientific theories through experimentation is at the heart of the scientific
endeavor. How data are acquired, recorded, and stored is thus of fundamental importance
to progress in science.
The results of research should be recorded and maintained in a form that allows
analysis and review. Research data should be immediately available to scientific
collaborators. Following publication, the data should be retained for a reasonable period in
order to be available promptly and completely to responsible scientists. Exceptions may be
appropriate in certain circumstances in order to preserve privacy, to assure patent protection,
or for similar reasons.

12. Intellectual Property

You find a novel solution to an important problem posed by your advisor; however,
your advisor sees this as an opportunity for him to get published, downplays the significance
of the results, collates a paper and submits it before you are any the wiser (the paper
acknowledges a discussion with you, but does not include you as an author). You are
absolutely clear that this idea was yours, and feel suitably put out. You approach your advisor
and make a complaint, but he empathizes with you and tells you to be a bit quicker with the
write-up next time. He tells you, “That’s just the way of the world.”
You decide not to leave it there, and approach the head of the department (going up
one link in the management chain). You make your complaint to him, and he asks you for
evidence, but you can’t provide any because you didn’t keep a dated notebook: all of your
notes are in several ring binders, some at home and some in your desk at work. You start
feeling a bit silly, and the head advises you to drop the matter.

Questions:
 Should you drop the issue?
I will not drop the issue because it will just be a burden on my mind for a long time
if I don't do my best to fight for my rights to be recognized or credited for contributing to the
paper.
 Are there long-term consequences for anyone to not drop the issue?
There will be long term consequences on both my part and my advisor. My
colleagues may think that I am just badmouthing my advisor or they may think that I am just
making things up while my advisor’s reputation and credibility may be doubted if I keep
insisting that he made my work into his own. If I proved that I have every right to be
included as an author for his paper then it will tarnish the reputation of my advisor which
will surely affect his standing and stature for a long time.
 Is there a “fair” way to make a claim to the results?  In the last questions, what
does the word f”fair” mean?
I think the fairest way we can solve this issue is by giving me time to collect
evidence that can prove my claims. After that, the head department can talk to us
individually and investigate the evidence that I have presented.
In this case, I think being fair means performing in accordance with the rules or policy
which bring about the greatest benefit to the company/department. Stealing intellectual
property does not just go against company rules but also violates the law. I think the reason
why rules, law or policy are created is so that everyone will be equal just like the saying
“everyone is equal in the eyes of the law”, this is what it means to be fair; giving a chance
to me and my advisor to prove our claims. Therefore, the word “fair” means having to go
through a legitimate process to reach an unbiased conclusion.
 The section on Educational Concerns has a case study about whistleblowing. Are
there whistleblower aspects to this case study?
Yes, because according to the requirements for a complaint to count as
whistleblowing, the complaint must be related to breaking the law, criminal offenses,
miscarriage of justice, potential or actual damage to the environment, health, or safety. I’m
sure that stealing intellectual property falls under one of these conditions which made my
complaint worthy to be considered as whistleblowing. I would actually prefer to solve this
issue in this way so that this will not turn into a public scandal since my advisor and I will
both suffer if it escalates too much. Also, if I decided to blow the whistle then I would be
granted some protection and with this method, the issue will be resolved more swiftly.

E. Issues to Bias
Webster’s New World Dictionary defines bias as “a mental leaning or inclination;
partiality; prejudice; bent.” Scientists are expected to be objective, and open to learning the truth
from their research. Yet, physicists are also human. Each of us has our own likes and dislikes,
preferences and preconceptions, and “hot buttons” that make us feel angry, uneasy, or
uncomfortable. Bias can damage research, if the researcher chooses to allow his bias to distort
the measurements and observations or their interpretation. When faculty are biased about
individual students in their courses, they may grade some students more or less favorably than
others, which is not fair to any of the students. In a research group, favored students and
colleagues may get the best assignments and helpful mentoring. People often prefer associating
with other people who are similar to themselves, their family members, or their friends.
The net result of these biases hurts physics, because people who are different and
would bring valuable new perspectives to the field have traditionally been excluded or
discouraged by those already in the field. It is not unusual for women, African Americans,
Hispanics, and Native Americans to feel unwelcome in physics and other scientific fields,
because of the low expectations their professors and colleagues have for them, and because
of how they are treated by the people who should be their peers and colleagues.
While it is probably impossible to eliminate bias, each person can strive to be aware of
his or her preferences and alert to situations where the bias can be damaging to the science or
one’s colleagues. Also, one can become a careful observer of others, and take action to
counteract the unfair or inappropriate consequences of biases, especially those that work to
exclude or diminish people from different backgrounds than the majority.

13. Bias in Hiring

You are a female physicist applying for a position you want very much at a
prestigious, albeit relatively conservative, university. During the interview process, you are
asked about whether you have a husband or significant other in the same field.

Questions:
 Should you answer this question?
I think it will depend on person if they want to answer the question or not. But I am
private person so I would humbly request them to respect my privacy. If it is very important for
them to know I will answer the question and not prefer to go in detail discussion about it.
 What implications might your answer have on the search committee’s attitude
toward you? (consider both the positive and negative answer)
They would have impression of me as polite or insolent person. Again, the implications
of my answer might depend on the search committee. Some people might think of attitude to be
rude and while someone might not.

14. Reaction to Bias

The graduate students, post-docs, and professor in your research group have spent
the past week brainstorming ideas for a major new proposal to submit to the National
Science Foundation. After much discussion, the professor selects Sally’s idea to be the core
of the proposal, and invites John to be Co-Pricipal Investigator with him, and to take the
lead in coordinating preparation of the proposal. Both Sally and John are senior post-docs
in the lab. It is a real honor and a career advantage to be a PI early in one’s career. By
offering one of his post-docs the opportunity to be Co-PI and work with him on preparing
the grant, the professor is helping launch the post- doc’s career. The issue is, why didn’t the
professor offer this opportunity to Sally, since the core idea in the proposal was hers?

Questions:
 In considering the scenario, how should the different students and postdocs respond
to this decision by the professor?  What should Sally do?
If John truly feels that Sally deserves the position more than him then he should
try to talk to his professor and recommend that Sally will do better than him since the core idea
was from Sally so it’s expected that Sally would have a better vision and more foresight on how
the work is gonna be. On the other hand, Sally should also talk to the professor diplomatically
and ask him to evaluate her abilities again and show the professor that she is interested in the
position. I think it would be more tactful if Sally does not directly mention that the professor is
playing favorites; she should just ask for opportunities or show her intention to help instead so
that she will not look like she’s badmouthing her colleagues.
 What are John’s responsibilities?
 I think John’s responsibility is to speak up and say no to the position. Since he
has not been that long in the workplace he may be singled out by his colleague which would
affect projects that require collaboration in the future. However, he should also never show or
give reasons that he is untrustworthy of the professor’s trust, at the same time he should also
refuse the benefits of favoritism because there might be a chance that John will be put in a
higher position but with unsupportive colleagues if he keeps working under the professor's
favor.

 Is it unrealistic to suggest to John that he express his concern to the professor?

I don't think it's unrealistic at all because if I were to receive something whether
it's a position or a reward under someone's favoritism then I would gladly refuse it. Favoritism
will always cause harm to the victims and also to the favorite person in the workplace.

F. Mentoring
Mentoring is the act of providing resources to encourage healthy growth. Mentoring
can involve individual relationships ranging from a casual offer of advice up to an
apprentice relationship. Mentoring implicitly involves expectations; both the mentor and
the mentee should have realistic and well understood goals for the timing and product of
the relationship. The ethics of one-on-one mentoring involves how the mentoring
expectations are formulated and met.

Working in a mentoring atmosphere can be as important as the availability of one-on

one help. Group leaders, from department chairs to research directors, have an ethical
obligation to create an environment that supports fair treatment and professional development
opportunities for all group members. With such broad ethical responsibility, mentoring issues
can overlap with issues of bias, health and safety, and maintaining the intrinsic ethical
standards of the discipline.

15. Mentoring Scenario

You enter graduate school with two full years of support from a fellowship awarded
by your undergraduate institution. You easily find a faculty member to work with your
thesis. At the end of the second year, the faculty member tells you that she will not be your
thesis advisor.

Questions:
 What should you do?
I would preferably find anyone as a new mentor for my thesis. I do not want to
decline the opportunity to improve. Though I have still learned from my first mentor, I
wanted to excel more.
 Was the behavior of this faculty member ethical?
Yes
 Why or why not?
The faculty member has an ethical behavior because she chose to let me know and
be informed unlike, leaving me alone without knowing her reasons.
 What should be the response of the department to this situation?
The department's response to this situation should be understood and respected by
the decisions made by the faculty member. And for sure, there is a reason behind that
decision of the faculty member.