Integration of Social Sciences and Humanities into Mechanical Engineering Curriculum

• Main Author: Nikša Dubreta
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Croatian Interdisciplinary Society 2014-04-01
• Series: Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems
• Subjects: engineering education; engineering profession; non-technical courses
• Online Access: http://indecs.eu/2014/indecs2014-pp137-150.pdf

Article deals with ways in which social sciences and humanities have been integrated from the 1980s to the present day into curriculum of Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture at University of Zagreb, Croatia. After a brief review and summary of selected research and theoretical contributions to the subject theme, a specific research setting is indicated and contextualized. Elements of socio-historical approach are established primarily through analysis of corresponding documents: curriculums from the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s and from key documents on strategic development of the Faculty. It is stressed that social sciences and humanities topics are continually represented in mechanical engineering study program as legitimate, but separate unit, poorly integrated in the main engineering courses. Together with more or less expressed orientation toward micro-social and micro-economical issues in industry and business, it points to the main features in continuity of establishing the field of social sciences and humanities. Finally, it is shown that chances to widen and enrich aforementioned field are in close relation to the character of engineering and its social contextualization expressed in a key Faculty’s strategic documents.