Engineering in Society (1985)

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 7 try. These are primarily due to the basic difference in objectives of the private and public sector organizations: profit making on the one hand, and the performance of public functions and services on the other. The number of government engineers who perform design and development work is relatively small; instead, the majority are primarily involved in the planning and management of contractor services. Most engineers in civil service are also necessarily more attuned to broad social needs and concerns relating to their work than are their counterparts in industry. Finally, there is also a prevailing perception that salaries—particularly in the lower and upper ranges—are lower in government than for comparable positions in industry, and that facilities and support also compare poorly. Because of this image problem, government today has difficulty attracting large numbers of highly qualified engineers. As was pointed out earlier, the postwar period has also seen a rapid increase in the awareness and public scrutiny of engineering activities by the general public. By the 1970s, changing attitudes had given rise to prevalent "antitechnology" attitudes, deriving perhaps from rising general levels of education as well as the greatly expanded capacity of technology for doing harm to individuals, the environment, and society itself. Engineers have tended to be wary of becoming involved in such politically and emotionally charged questions. However, while antitechnology pressures will ebb and flow, they have become an ever-present fact of life. Engineers and engineering will continue to be scrutinized on the one hand and, on the other, asked to perform miracles. ENGINEERING AND SOCIETY: THE DYNAMICS OF INTERACTION Based on its examination of past and present characteristics and tendencies of the engineering profession, the panel attempted to formulate a generalized, informal model of the dynamic interactions of engineering with the larger society. That formulation is briefly summarized here. Supply and Demand • The demand-pull factor is the principal driver of technology development and the production of engineers. • The supply-push of scientific advances is one of the primary stimulants to industry demand for engineers. • To date, there has been sufficient flexibility in the engineering 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 8 supply system to meet societal demand for technology-based goods and services. • The system has been able to respond to changing demand for three reasons: (1) the engineering educational system is flexible enough to adapt institutionally and pedagogically to new requirements; (2) students react quickly to economic signals in opting to study engineering and in choosing specific fields of engineering study; and (3) change has seldom occurred more rapidly than individual engineers could adapt. • Engineering institutions reflect the compartmental structure established in the nineteenth century. However, schools have adapted to demands for interdisciplinary engineering study; in addition, intra-and interdisciplinary movement of engineers has not been prevented. • Use of foreign engineers trained in the United States is another mechanism for meeting demand. • Because it takes at least four years to educate an engineer, there is necessarily an out-of-phase quality to the time frames in which demand and supply operate. • In a context of rapid technological advancement and numerous weaknesses in the educational system, it has become increasingly difficult for industry's changing expectations to be met within the confines of the present system. • Factors that may limit supply response in the future include. —a demographic decline in the population of 18-year-olds —variable academic ability of the student pool —a decline in math/science literacy among secondary-school students —a drop in the relative attractiveness of engineering jobs in an improving economy. Maintaining Adaptability • The focus of the delivery system for engineers is the engineering educational system, where stresses resulting from changes in the nature and intensity of demand are most acutely felt. • Engineering education is subjected to conflicting pressures for: (1) greater specialization; (2) broader, more general technical education; and (3) the inclusion of more extensive general education content such as liberal arts) in the engineering curriculum. • The avoidance of technological obsolescence requires that engineers obtain an education featuring a good balance of specialization and breadth of courses.