Teaching Ethics For Construction Management Majored Students: Standalone Or Micro-Insert? - Globalization and Sustainability Considerations

George C. Wang; John St James Stewart Buckeridge

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Conference: 2016 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
Publication Date: June 26, 2016
Start Date: June 26, 2016
End Date: June 29, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-692-68565-5
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Ethics Instruction in Context: Civil and Construction Engineering and Engineering Technology
Tagged Division: Engineering Ethics
Page Count: 16
DOI: 10.18260/p.27352
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/27352
Download Count: 657

Paper Authors

biography

George C. Wang East Carolina University orcid.org/0000-0003-3593-5925

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Dr. George Wang had worked in the industry for 15 years prior to coming back to academia. He has broad research interests including infrastructure construction engineering and management, ethics education in engineering and construction, risk management in construction, environmental and energy aspects in constructed facilities, nontraditional materials utilization in construction, concrete and asphalt technology. He has managed numerous international construction projects in different countries, and conducted many research projects funded by federal, state/provincial governments and industries. He is an international training expert hired by the World Bank Group, Washington DC, and a visiting professor at several universities. He is the sole author of the new book, entitled "The Utilization of Slag in Civil Infrastructure Construction", published by Elsevier in 2016.

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John St James Stewart Buckeridge RMIT University

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John Buckeridge, PhD, CP (Env) FGS is Professor of Natural Resources Engineering at RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia, where he maintains wide international involvement in the environment and ethics. He is on the Executive Board of the International Council for Science, Immediate Past President of the International Union of Biological Sciences, President Emeritus of the International Society of Zoological Sciences, Chair of the International Union of Biological Sciences Ethics Commission, Honorarprofessor of Engineering Ethics at Wismar University of Business, Technology and Design (Germany) and Honorary Member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.

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Abstract

Teaching Ethics For Construction Management Majored Students: Standalone Or Micro-Insert? – Globalization and Sustainability Considerations George C. Wang East Carolina University John S. Buckeridge RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

An Abstract submitted to ASEE New Orleans · June 26 - 29, 2016

Abstract Ethical decision-making is central to the practice of construction management. This is no more evident than in the twenty-first century, when the construction industry must function in very diverse organizational contexts. Whilst construction companies pursue projects in international markets, many investors are buying or forming joint ventures with domestic companies. New and varied professional attitudes have recently arrived in western markets because construction companies are increasingly employing managers from developing nations to undertake commercial and infrastructure engineering projects. The construction industry, in both developing and developed countries, is vulnerable to unethical behavior or corruption – vulnerability in part because of differences in culture and managerial systems across countries; and this diversity is manifest in the different perspectives of professional ethics and professional practice. On the other hand, the incorporation of sustainability principles in natural resources, environmental management, the economy and adoption of a “reduce, reuse & recycle” philosophy in construction and constructed facilities are clear imperatives. Our contention is that construction management students must fully cognizant of these imperatives. However ethics education for most construction management students currently lacks global components and sustainability – further, curricula only require “micro-inserts” of ethics teaching without any systematic or standalone course for professional education. This is contrast to engineering programs, such as civil, environmental and computer engineering. This paper discusses the nature of the construction industry, globalized trends, sustainable development and confirms the necessity for integrating ethics education into the curriculum – in anticipation that this will ensure the highest level of professionalism when construction management students graduate.

Citation
Format

Wang, G. C., & Buckeridge, J. S. J. S. (2016, June), Teaching Ethics For Construction Management Majored Students: Standalone Or Micro-Insert? - Globalization and Sustainability Considerations Paper presented at 2016 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, New Orleans, Louisiana. 10.18260/p.27352

TY - CPAPER
AB - Teaching Ethics For Construction Management Majored Students: Standalone Or Micro-Insert? – Globalization and Sustainability Considerations
George C. Wang
East Carolina University
John S. Buckeridge
RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

An Abstract submitted to ASEE
New Orleans · June 26 - 29, 2016

Abstract
Ethical decision-making is central to the practice of construction management. This is no more evident than in the twenty-first century, when the construction industry must function in very diverse organizational contexts. Whilst construction companies pursue projects in international markets, many investors are buying or forming joint ventures with domestic companies. New and varied professional attitudes have recently arrived in western markets because construction companies are increasingly employing managers from developing nations to undertake commercial and infrastructure engineering projects. The construction industry, in both developing and developed countries, is vulnerable to unethical behavior or corruption – vulnerability in part because of differences in culture and managerial systems across countries; and this diversity is manifest in the different perspectives of professional ethics and professional practice. On the other hand, the incorporation of sustainability principles in natural resources, environmental management, the economy and adoption of a “reduce, reuse &amp; recycle” philosophy in construction and constructed facilities are clear imperatives. Our contention is that construction management students must fully cognizant of these imperatives. However ethics education for most construction management students currently lacks global components and sustainability – further, curricula only require “micro-inserts” of ethics teaching without any systematic or standalone course for professional education. This is contrast to engineering programs, such as civil, environmental and computer engineering. This paper discusses the nature of the construction industry, globalized trends, sustainable development and confirms the necessity for integrating ethics education into the curriculum – in anticipation that this will ensure the highest level of professionalism when construction management students graduate.

AU - George C. Wang
AU - John St James Stewart Buckeridge
CY - New Orleans, Louisiana
DA - 2016/06/26
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Teaching Ethics For Construction Management Majored Students: Standalone Or Micro-Insert? - Globalization and Sustainability Considerations
UR - https://peer.asee.org/27352
DO - 10.18260/p.27352
ER -