Research on the unethical conducts and practices among professionals in the construction industry

Abstract

Construction industry involved with large number of stakeholders. This industry has a complex contractual structure besides facing with several of psychological human behavior that exposed to the unethical conducts and practices among professionals. Professional ethics warmly has been discussed today within the construction industry. Ethics can be known as a major catalyst for the construction industry to attain status to a successful industry in the worldwide. As a result the aims to be a developed country can be achieved with cooperation from every structural in the construction community. However, without any changes on the unethical conducts and practices among professionals in the construction industry can make it all this becomes useless. Thus, the solid understandings and changes need to be executed, implemented and reinforced to ensure that the problems in the professional ethics can be resolved. This paper discusses and reviews on the unethical conducts and practices among professionals in the different countries such as Malaysia, Pakistan, Australia, Kenya, United Kingdom and China whereby the different behavior will be visible. The most common highlighted for the unethical conducts and practices among professionals in the construction industry were the corruption, negligence, unfair conduct, overriding on audit process over contracting process, favoritism, strict rule, conflict of interest, collusive tendering and violation of environmental ethics. In the previous studies, there were mechanism suggested whereby they are divided into three mechanisms included short, medium and long term solutions based on the project factors which are time, cost and quality. The mechanisms suggested can be catalyst in achieving and enhancing ethical conducts and practices among the professional in the construction industry. This review will provide useful information to every stakeholder in confronting with the unethical conducts and practices among professionals in the construction industry involved.