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Mamphey, S.A., 2024. A framework for the implementation of International Construction Ethics Standards in sub-Sahara Africa: the case of Ghana. PhD, Nottingham Trent University.
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Abstract
Built environment professionals make decisions in their daily practice that affect various aspects of human lives. Their decisions are regulated by a professional code of ethics, which stipulates the rules that guide their practice. Irrespective of their common heritage as built environment professions, disciplines within the sector operate separate ethics guidelines, reflecting diverse priorities rather than a unified set of values. For professionals operating globally, varying ethical standards and practices across jurisdictions require adjusting to different ethical expectations, creating dilemmas where ethical boundaries are often unclear. To address these disparities, the International Ethics Standards Coalition (IESC) introduced the first draft of global ethical standards for the built environment sector in 2016, ratified and adopted in 2021.
Global standards aim to provide consistency across jurisdictions, ensuring practitioners worldwide follow identical ethical principles. Yet, the effectiveness of global standards in ensuring consistent ethical practice is contentious. This is because morality is often culture-specific; what is ethical in one culture might be unethical in another. Indeed, in professions like accountancy, the impact of global standards was influenced by the socio-cultural norms, values, and practices of the host country.
Focusing on Ghana, the literature is silent on how Ghanaian built environment professional bodies can integrate and apply global ethics standards in their unique setting. This study examines the impact of Ghana’s socio-cultural context on applying universal ethics principles in its built environment sector and proposes a framework for adopting the IESC’s global standards locally. A qualitative content analysis was used to compare selected Ghanaian codes with the IESC global standards, identifying areas of alignment and divergence. A grounded theory methodology guided 25 semi-structured interviews with Ghanaian professionals, providing the empirical basis for the framework.
The findings reveal a low level of awareness of the IESC ethics principles among Ghanaian built environment professionals. This thesis posits that a deontological ethical framework primarily offers the most effective philosophical paradigm for facilitating the integration of the IESC’s global ethics principles into the Ghanaian built environment sector. However, it is crucial to acknowledge the necessity for flexibility and contextual adaptation. Not all ethical principles in international standards can be effectively implemented through a purely deontological approach. Some principles may require a more gradual and nuanced introduction, particularly in contexts where they are not readily accepted or embraced. Traditional socio-cultural practices exert a strong influence on corporate governance and combined with other systemic challenges, hinder the effective implementation of the IESC global ethics principles. However, targeted policies, as illustrated in the resultant framework could facilitate their successful implementation. This thesis contributes to knowledge by advancing the understanding of how the IESC’s global ethics principles can be implemented in the Ghanaian context and offers policy recommendations for their successful application.
| Item Type: | Thesis | ||||||||||||
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| Creators: | Mamphey, S.A. | ||||||||||||
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| Date: | January 2024 | ||||||||||||
| Rights: | The copyright in this work is held by the author. You may copy up to 5% of this work for private study, or personal, non-commercial research. Any re-use of the information contained within this document should be fully referenced, quoting the author, title, university, degree level and pagination. Queries or requests for any other use, or if a more substantial copy is required, should be directed to the author. | ||||||||||||
| Divisions: | Schools > School of Architecture, Design and the Built Environment | ||||||||||||
| Record created by: | Jonathan Gallacher | ||||||||||||
| Date Added: | 14 Aug 2024 10:32 | ||||||||||||
| Last Modified: | 14 Aug 2024 10:32 | ||||||||||||
| URI: | https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/52001 |
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