The Ford Pinto Case

A Study in Applied Ethics, Business, and Technology

Edited by Douglas Birsch & John Fielder

Subjects: Ethics
Series: SUNY series, Case Studies in Applied Ethics, Technology, and Society
Paperback : 9780791422342, 338 pages, October 1994
Hardcover : 9780791422335, 338 pages, October 1994
Out of print (Hardcover)

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Table of contents

Preface

Ethical Analysis of Case Studies

PART I: THE PINTO CONTROVERSY

Introduction: The Pinto Controversy
Douglas Birsch

1. Pinto Madness
Mark Dowie

2. Ford Rebuts Pinto Criticism and Says Article is Distorted
The National Underwriter

3. The Pinto Documents
Lee Patrick Strobel

4. The Pinto Fuel System
West's California Reporter

5. Motor Vehicle Safety Standard, Part 571; S 301

6. Investigation Report, Phase I: Alleged Fuel Tank and Filler Neck Damage in Rear-End Collision of Subcompact Passenger Cars

7. Pinto Fires and Personal Ethics: A Script Analysis of Missed Opportunities
Dennis A. Gioia

PART II: COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS

Introduction: Cost-Benefits Analysis

8. Cost-Benefit Analysis: An Ethical Critique
Steven Kelman

9. Defending Cost-Benfit Analysis: Replies to Steven Kelman
James V. Delong; Robert M. Solow; Gerard Butters, John Calfee, and Pauline Ippolito; Robert A. Nisbet

10. Product Safety, Cost-Benefit Analysis, and the Ford Pinto Case
Douglas Birsch

11. Fatalities Associated with Crash-Induced Fuel Leakage and Fires
E. S. Grush and C. S. Saunby

PART III: WHISTLE BLOWING

Introduction: Whistle Blowing

12. Ethical Responsibilities of Engineers in Large Organizations: The Pinto Case
Richard T. De George

13. Commentary on "Ethical Responsibilities of Engineers in Large Organizations: The Pinto Case"
Hart T. Mankin

14. Whistle Blowing, Ethical Obligation, and the Ford Pinto Case
Douglas Birsch

PART IV: PRODUCT LIABILITY

Introduction: Product Liability

15. Marketing and Product Liability: A Review and Update
Fred W. Morgan

16. Strict Products Liability and Compensatory Justice
George G. Brenkert

17. Grimshaw v. Ford Motor Company
West's California Reporter

PART V: THE REGULATION OF BUSINESS

Introduction: The Regulation of Business

18. Profits vs. Safety
Francis T. Cullen, William J. Maakestad, and Gray Cavender

19. Five Moral Imperatives of Government Regulation
Peter Barton Hutt

20. Regulation: A Substitute for Morality
Alasdair MacIntyre

21. The Ethics and Politics of Automobile Regulation
John H. Fielder

Appendix: Abbreviated Ford Pinto Chronology

Bibliography

Index

Description

This book brings together the basic documents needed for reaching an informed judgment on the central ethical question in the Pinto case: did Ford Motor Company act ethically in designing the Pinto fuel system and in deciding not to upgrade the integrity of that system until 1978? The five parts of this book cover the case, cost-benefit analysis, whistle blowing, product liability, and government regulations.

Douglas Birsch, Associate Professor of Philosophy is an instructor at Villanova University. He is co-author of The DC-10 Case: A Study in Applied Ethics, Technology, and Society, also published by SUNY Press. John H. Fielder, Professor of Philosophy, is an instructor at Villanova University. He is co-author of The DC-10 Case: A Study in Applied Ethics, Technology, and Society, also published by SUNY Press.

Reviews

"The Ford Pinto case is mentioned in most Business Ethics texts as an example of Cost-Benefit analysis, yet in those formats any appreciation of the complexity surrounding the issues of such decisions is overly simplified. As a thorough study, this book provides material that enriches the entire idea of using a particular case as an avenue of learning about Ethics, Business, Society, Technology, and Government Regulation. Rather than as a mere reference tool for educators and other professionals, this book could be successful in the classroom in a way that no other anthology or collection of short case studies could be. " — Greg Pasquarello, Neumann College