How Professional Ethics Impact Construction Quality - Assignment Example

How to critique Journal Article Hamzah, Abdul-Rahman, Chen Wang, and Xiang Wen Yap. How professional ethics impact construction quality: Perception and evidence in a fast developing economy. Scientific Research and Essays Vol. 5(23), pp. 3742-3749, 4 December 2010. Problem statement The study seeks to highlight the current level of professional ethics standards in the construction industry. Additionally, the paper seeks to find how such levels of professional ethics influences the quality of construction projects (Abdul-Rahman, Wang, and Yap, 3742). Literature review A profession refers to a group of people who are organized to serve a body of specialized knowledge, in the best interest of the society. On the other hand, professional ethics refers to a system of norms, which guides the behavior and morality of professionals in their day-to-day activities, to ensure that they act in a way matching the social norms (3742). The construction industry is one of the most vital sectors of the economy of any country, in that it contributes significantly to the economy of any country through employing its labor force ranging from 2-10% of the population for any country. Additionally, the infrastructural facilities provided by this sector are some of the most reliable foundations of a countries economy. Nevertheless, the issues of quality, productivity, and safety have been associated with this sector for decades now, as the major weaknesses that the sector needs to address (3743). Professional ethics is an aspect that can be applied to address these issues, considering that there are competing interests between those involved in construction and their clients. While clients are majorly concerned with quality and safety of such constructions, constructors are interested in finishing the projects within the set time and budget, minimizing the costs as possible, while increasing their profit earnings. The application of ethical code of conduct can thus serve to create responsibility and enhance the achievement of interests for both parties (3745). Journal critique The title of the article is appropriate and clear, in that it clearly states the aim of the study in an understandable manner. The title states clearly the objective of the study, which is to measure how ethics impacts on the quality of constructions. Additionally, the title highlights that this objective is to be achieved through the perception and evidence obtained from a fast growing economy (3742). The abstract of the study is clear and concise, touching on all parts of the study and highlighting the most vital aspects of various sections of the study. It starts with a brief introduction into the important role of ethics in achieving quality for construction projects. This is followed by a clear statement of study problem, after which the findings of the study are discussed briefly. Finally, the abstract highlights the important conclusions that the study makes, effectively covering all the areas of the study, as required for a suitable and representative abstract. The introduction of the study is well formulated, stating clearly the purpose of the study and the results that this study seeks to achieve. The introduction provides a brief background of the study, giving the history of construction issues and problems, and the likely causes, citing the roles played by all the stakeholders in subscribing to these problems (3744). Under the introduction, a concise and comprehensive literature review of the area of study is covered, creating an understanding to the readers on the background of this study, as well as the need for such a study, in addressing the issues highlighted. The research design adopted by the study is relevant, in that a quantitative method was applied, by using questionnaires to gather the requisite information from the respondents, who were the clients and constructors. The target population was also inclusive of all the stakeholders in this sector. The questionnaires were sent to the addresses of the respondents and a follow up call was made to ensure that they received them. If they did not, an alternative means was applied to present the respondents with the data collection tools. However, the method used by the study was not suitable. First, the study limited its area to only two states of Malaysia, and out of the two sates selected only 500 respondents. Therefore, the population sampled may not be representative of the whole population, making the findings obtained inappropriate for generalization. Additionally, the response rate by the respondents’ was too low, where only 66 out of a possible 500 respondents availed their complete response, making the response rate tally at only 13.2% (3745). Thus, the findings of the study, based on the response rate may not be fully dependable. The discussion of the study is relevant, in that it presents and interprets the findings of the study as per the data obtained. The suitability of the discussion can also be traced on the clear explanation of the methodology and research design applied in the study, as well as the data interpretation and analysis applied. The clarity of the discussion makes it easier for the readers to understand clearly the whole research process. Such a discussion makes the findings of the study understandable, in that while 77.3% of the participants were observed to apply the ethical codes to guide their day-to-day professional activities, 22.3% did not apply or adhere to such ethical codes (3747). The statements made by the authors are clear, since under the discussion, an interpretation of the findings is done in a manner relevant to the study purpose and in a way to respond to the study problem first stated. The authors are objective, in that they give a discussion meant to create an understanding of the nature of the ethics in the Malaysian construction industry, and the implications of adhering or non-adherence to the ethical codes. The statistical methods applied to analyze the findings have been clearly presented, where SPSS version 15 was applied (3748). The statistical results have been clearly presented and discussed in tables, interpreted in terms of frequencies and percentages. Thus, the statistical methods applied are suitable for the study, with an exception of the data collection process, which obtained limited information, due to the small number of respondents who fully responded to the data collection tools. Works Cited Hamzah, Abdul-Rahman, Chen Wang, and Xiang Wen Yap. How professional ethics impact construction quality: Perception and evidence in a fast developing economy. Scientific Research and Essays Vol. 5(23), 2010. 3742-3749. Print. Read More