Ethical Identification And Building Trust For The Built Environment: A Systems Approach

Abstract

Ethics, social responsibility, and trust are critical issues for the built environment from production and professional identity perspectives. In professional degree curriculums, because of the specific areas and topical contents of the degree programs, the relationships and ethical responsibilities are generally illustrated using focused, specific and limited processes such as the design process, construction process and manufacturing process. As a result, the understanding of production objectives, expectancies and relationships among the professions and organizations are missing in a broader sense. This paper presents a systems approach for illustrating a broader picture for improving the understanding in expectancies and relationships among the built environment elements. The system identifies its elements from the creation of the financial sources through design, construction and delivery to the owner and public. The need for the systems thinking is discussed for ethical identification of and building trust for the built environment.

Decision-making in a Competitive Business Environment: A Guided Case Study Discussion

“…The second recommendation is to encourage exploration of ideas and maintain continuity during the discussion, although the conversation may deviate from the initial question. In agreement with Hatipkarasulu and Gill's suggestions [11], our experience also shows that differentiating between legality and ethics, and avoiding situational analysis are also very important for the overall argument.…”

“…In 2006, Hatipkarasulu and Gill proposed a systems approach for teaching ethics in the built environment disciplines, starting with the basic definitions of system structure, ethical principles, professional responsibilities and identity, followed by decision-making and handling conflicts [11]. Our experience confirms the effectiveness of the approach suggested by Hatipkarasulu and Gill.…”

“…In the last few years, we have conducted this case study discussion with different audiences, including college students, mid/high-level managers in the industry, and construction company owners. The case is usually presented combined with a formal ethics lecture where the fundamental definitions and principle to application concepts are covered based on the Hatipkarasulu and Gill [11] approach. This particular case study receives a high level of attention from senior-level students (especially after completing their internships) or industry practitioners since the response and discussion require a specific understanding of construction industry practices.…”

“…For example, design-specific cases and discussions usually become the focal point in professional design curriculums [7], while contractual and competitive relationships take center stage in construction curriculums [8]. There are also comprehensive study materials and educational approaches which present a broader perspective [9][10][11][12].…”