There are different templates and structures for user manuals, case WebA classic example of unethical technical writing is the memo report NASA engineers wrote about the problem with O-ring seals on the space shuttle Challenger. Learn more. For example, scholarly research is theoretically intended to find evidence either that the new researchers ideas are valid (and important) or evidence that those ideas are undeveloped, trivial, or simply wrong. Thanks to Eleanor Sumpter-Latham, Humanities/Writing Professor at Central Oregon Community College for contributing to this chapter. Lets look at a few. In a technical report that contains research, a writer might discover conflicting data that does not support the projects goal. What is the nature of the ethical dilemma?

For example, saying that one test This chapter was written by Annemarie Hamlin, Chris Rubio, and Michele DeSilva, Central Oregon Community College, and is licensed CC-BY 4.0.

What do you notice about their presentation? Learn about unethical business practices with an overview, behaviors, and examples. Adapted from 9.1 General Principles by Allison Gross, Annemarie Hamlin, Billy Merck, Chris Rubio, Jodi Naas, Megan Savage, and Michele DeSilva is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted. As a guideline, ask yourself what would happen if your action (or non-action) became public. Professional documents can serve as evidence in disputes over contracts and in product liability lawsuits. Both of these examples could be considered unethical, as the display of information is crucial to how readers encounter and interpret it. If you click on the Tools button, you have the option of filtering results by how they are licensed.

This includes scholarly and professional research, not just from a single database or journal, for instance, but from a variety.

For example, lets say you are writing a report for a group of physical therapists on the latest techniques for rehabilitating knee surgery patients. Being caught in a lawsuit has many consequences for a company. What do you notice about how the information is conveyed to the reader in these two charts? When writers present information visually, however, they have to be careful not to misrepresent or misreport the complete picture. Documenting source use in such a way as to either mislead your reader about the source or make identifying the source difficult is also unethicalthat would include using just a URL or using an article title without identifying the journal in which it appears (in the works cited/references; you would not likely identify the journal name in the reports body). Learn more.

You might notice that most of these ethics violations could happen accidentally. This means that any document from memos and emails to proposals and studies can be subject to revision by a court of law. The position of information in this document did not help them understand that the problem could be fatal. Graphics created by the federal government, say from the National Park Service, or the FDA, or the EPA, are not under copyright, and therefore can be used without having to go through the sometimes-onerous process of securing permissions. Some might consider the context before determining how to act. Thanks to Eleanor Sumpter-Latham, Humanities/Writing Professor at Central Oregon Community College for contributing to this chapter. Collectively, these people are called stakeholders because they have a stake in what you are writing. * *(e) I should use jargon and euphemisms when stating my

They should also be easy to understand. For example, use a salutation like Dear Ms. X (external) or Hi Barry (internal). Are they peer reviewed by experts in the field? Most ethics violations in technical writing are (probably) unintentional, but they are still ethics violations. An individual promotes a product on social media even though they know the product does not do what they advertised and is harmful. ENGL 145 Technical and Report Writing,by the Bay College Online Learning Department, licensed CC-BY. WebAs a writer, you may have to make the decision, or your client may indicate what type of document and when they want to use it. Like other professionals, technical writers come up against ethical issues regularly and must make decisions about how to move forward with a project in the face of ethical dilemmas. Here are several examples of unethical communication. Emails. Therefore, the company or organization is responsible for giving adequate instructions and warning users about the risks associated with the product. Falsifying one report will make it that much more likely the subsequent reports will be falsified, just as neglecting to properly cite one source at the end of a report only makes it more tempting to neglect citing the remainder of the sources. Your goal is to maintain and enhance your credibility, and that of your organization, at all times. For example, if you take an item that would cost money to buy and copy it for other people, you are affecting the market for that product since the people you give it to will now not have to purchase it themselves. (Full disclosure: this online textbook incorporates material shared under a Creative Commons license. Only the copyright holder, the person/organization who owns the protected item, can copy it. It is easy to get caught up in the facts and forget all the people involved.

The A chemical company dumps pollutants into the water supply rather than cleaning up the Documenting your sources includes showing exactly what you borrowed both where you used it in your text and on Works Cited, Works, or References list at the end of your document (the different terms reflect different documentation systems, not just random preference). Develop good habits now and maintain them through practice. . It is much easier to define what is not adequate. Graphics, as well as text, should be properly cited in the document text and on the Works Cited page. Technical Writing, by Allison Gross, Annamarie Hamlin, Billy Merck, Chris Rubio, Jodi Naas, Megan Savage and Michele DiSilva, licensed CC-BY-NC-SA. Lets look at a few. Which choice is really more ethical? Knowing your biases may help you begin to overcome them.

For example, Proposal attached or Your question of 10/25.. The bar graph on the right, on the other hand, shows the complete picture by presenting numbers from 0-1200 on the vertical axis, and we see that the sales figures, have in fact been relatively stable for the past five years. Their feelings and livelihood must be considered with every appropriate document you create. This can be done by lying, misrepresenting facts, or just twisting numbers to favor your opinion and objectives. If you were writing a report on the real estate market in the Hudson Valley region of New York, you would not collect data from only one brokers office. Presenting data in graphical form can be especially challenging. While this office might have access to broader data on the real estate market, as a writer you run the risk of looking biased if you only chose materials from this one source. An even more common ethics violation results from the person who designs the information mistakenly believing that they are presenting evidence objectively, without recognizing their own bias in how they presented that information. First, find out if the item can be used. We meet the terms of contracts we undertake. That means technical writers must consciously identify their biases and check to see if a bias has influenced any presentation: whether in charts and graphs, or in discussions of the evidence, or in source use (or, of course, in putting the crucial O ring information where the launch decision makers would realize it was important).

The character, purpose of use, and amount of information being used. Should they reveal this in their report or should they take other courses of action?

The second idea Anderson describes is to use facts or reason, instead of accusation. Often in technical writing, the underlying principle is already well-documented (maybe even common knowledge for your audience) and the point should be to use that underlying principle to propose a specific application. Unethical source use also includes falsifying the nature of the source, such as omitting the page numbers in the Works Cited entry to make a brief note seem to be a full article. 1). Technical writing is only useful if it can be understood, and a large part of how we write is regulated with that in mind. The third helpful way to bring your companys unethical practices to the surface is to remain open to others ideas.

If you use graphics (or anything at all) in an assignment that you did not create, you need to indicate as much. Hey, I have this great new idea that will solve world hunger, cure cancer, and make mascara really waterproof.

In almost every field, there are legal and professional consequences for committing unethical behavior, and often remaining silent about corrupt conductwhether the action are yours or a colleaguescan implicate you as well.

(c) downplaying information *(d) a, b, and c.*, *Which of the following statements is least accurate? For example, hiding some crucial bit of information in the middle of a long paragraph deep in a lengthy document seriously de-emphasizes the information. If you take the unethical route, odds are good that few (or no) people will realize you have done so, and you would not be doing anything illegal. Many products are recalled for potential safety concerns, even if no one was actually hurt. It is difficult to deal with unethical practices when they surface in the workplace. To write ethically, you must also identify another group of people: the individuals who will gain or lose because of your message. Using a large section of your report to prove an already established principle implies that you are saying something new about the principlewhich is not true. You would not want someone else taking credit for your ideas. Imagine that these pie charts represented donations received by four candidates for city council. For example, your small company continues to have problems with employee morale. If you need to use graphics from the internet, a good option is to look for graphics that are open source. quotations from experts B. emotional appeals C. examples and facts D. statistics. Be cautious when using figures, charts and tables, making sure they visually represent quantities with accuracy and honesty. You should spend some time examining your ethics and thinking about how and where they may be challenged in your career. You struggle with whether to leave this information out of your report, thereby encouraging your employer to pursue an action that is really not feasible.

Are open web sources just as valid as academic sources for certain topics? You struggle with whether to leave this information out of your report, thereby encouraging your employer to pursue an action that is not feasible.

WebAs technical communicators, we observe the following ethical principles in our professional activities.

What was it used for?

This lie, though minor, preserves your friends feelings and does no apparent harm to them or anyone else. That means a technical writer must consciously identify his/her biases and check to see if a bias has influenced any presentation: whether in charts and graphs, or in discussions of the evidence, or in source use (or, of course, in putting the crucial O ring information where the launch decision makers would realize it was important). Writers may encounter situations in which they must ask the following kinds of questions: What kinds of support material and sources are ethical to use? WebUnderstanding Ethical Guidelines for Writing. Financial Report: Communication status and trends from a finance perspective: 7. The unethical feature was that the crucial information about the O-rings was buried in a middle paragraph, while information approving the launch was in prominent beginning and ending spots. Many organizations and employers have a corporate code of ethics. Though the data is identical, the pie chart on the left presents the information in a misleading way. Then you can apply the information from your source(s) to your specific task or proposal. Even more common is an ethics violation resulting from individuals who are honestly unaware of their own biased viewpoints and therefore unable to recognize the bias in how they have presented information. This lie, though minor, preserves your friends feelings and does no harm to her or anyone else. In a more serious situation, people might not risk their own lives to save a strangers life, but some might well risk dying to save their own childrens lives.

In day-to-day life, most people have a sort of sliding scale on what constitutes ethical behavior: they would not tell a direct lie on trivial matters if doing so would hurt someones feelings. Chapter 3: Team Work and Collaborative Writing. Ethical behavior, including ethical technical communication, involves not just telling the truth and providing accurate information, but telling the truth and providing information so that a reasonable audience knows the truth.

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