The attitude of construction-related students toward sustainability in the built environment in South Korea

Abstract

Sustainability has become an important consideration in the construction industry, and it must support the triple bottom line of environmental, social and economic benefits. As construction students are becoming leaders and innovators in construction, it is necessary to motivate construction students to learn the concept of sustainability, and to learn the sustainable design and construction skills which can be implemented in their daily activities. This study investigates the level of the construction student's familiarity and interest toward sustainability, their attitude toward sustainability, and the factors influencing student's attitude toward sustainability in Republic of Korea. To accomplish the main objectives, this study employs a piloted survey instrument created and developed by the authors. This is a descriptive and correlation study using responses from architecture and architectural engineering students at four universities in the mid-eastern region of South Korea. Using descriptive statistics and multiple regressions using SPSS version 17, this study measured the level of familiarity with the concept of sustainability and the sustainable design and construction skills. It also identified the factors which affect students' attitude toward sustainability. With this study, it is possible to help educators motivate and teach students to improve their attitude toward sustainability in the built environment. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2010.