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2020 Vol.10, Issue 2

Research Article

Toward a Technique of Evaluating Student Ethical Sensitivity to Professional Issues of the Construction Industry
Kenneth S. Sands II1*
Annie R. Pearce2
Min Jae Suh3
Denise R. Simmons4
Christine M. Fiori5
Victoria A. Mouras6
1Assistant Professor, Department of Construction Management, Florida Gulf Coast University, USA
2Associate Professor, Department of Building Construction, Virginia Tech, USA
3Assistant Professor, Department of Engineering Technology, Sam Houston State University, USA
4Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Coastal Engineering, University of Florida, USA
Clinical Professor and Department Head, Construction, Engineering and Project Management and Systems Engineering, Drexel University, USA
Assistant Professor of Practice, The Charles E. Via, Jr. Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech, USA
*kesands@fgcu.edu
June 2020. pp. 1-20
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Abstract

The construction industry is inundated with unethical activity and is viewed as one of the most corrupt industries in any business sector. This activity has caught the attention of public agencies, industry groups, and academic accrediting bodies such as the American Council for Construction Education (ACCE) and the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) which lead to a requirement for ethics education. The problem is that the requirement to teach ethics is not complimented with an understanding of construction student ethical competency. Construction students should possess the ability to recognize ethical issues of the construction industry, namely have ethical sensitivity, as a milestone to making proper ethical decisions in practice. The purpose of this study is to suggest a qualitative response, quantitatively scored means of testing the ethical sensitivity of construction students known as the Test for Ethical Sensitivity in Construction (TESC). This paper presents the test development process of the TESC technique in addition to initial findings from piloting the TESC in two construction programs in the United States.

Keywords
Construction education
ethics
ethical sensitivity
instrument development
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Information
  • Publisher :Korea Institute of Construction Engineering and Management
  • Publisher(Ko) :한국건설관리학회
  • Journal Title :Journal of Construction Engineering and Project Management
  • Volume : 10
  • No :2
  • Pages :1-20
  • Received Date :2019. 07. 17
  • Revised Date :2019. 11. 20
  • Accepted Date : 2020. 02. 05
  • DOI :https://doi.org/10.6106/JCEPM.2020.10.2.001
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