The cultural shift of the *construction industry of Hong Kong under the influence of sustainable development

Sustainability arises from a global demand for sustainable development and embodies new values in human culture by establishing a sustainable society which is equally prosperous for future generations. A genuinely sustainable society is run by citizens who initiate developments in sustainable ways and is based on a recognized code of conduct---the sustainable culture.;Sustainable culture is not static but changed over time by external and internal forces that lead to growth and development towards sustainability. The movement of sustainable culture over a certain time interval (cultural shift) records the rate of changes and reflects on positive or negative progresses on sustainability within that context.;The construction industry is economically, socially and environmentally significant for the achievement of sustainable development in Hong Kong, the participants of the construction industry can be categorized by their functional input into five stakeholder groups viz. Government, Developer, Consultant, Contractor and Non-professional Frontline Participant. Changes within their sustainable culture in project development, design and construction operations reflects a cultural shift within the construction industry; these changes in sustainable culture comprised attitudinal and conduct components covering human behaviours in awareness, concern, motivation and implementation.;Changes within these components can be investigated and measured by an exclusively designed T-model which comprises a questionnaire and a space diagram. The 446 and 317 valid responses obtained from the questionnaires conducted in years 2004 and 2006 respectively were integrated into the space diagram and produced the cultural shift results in a simple curve.;Structured interviews were conducted with representatives from each stakeholder groups to validate the cultural shift results; four case studies with unique emphasis on construction objectives were carried out to cross-references with the findings.;Continuous measurement in suitable intervals will capture the trend of culture shift. The result shown in a simple curve is useful for decision-makers in the Government and private sectors to understand the changes underway, thus enabling them to review and align policies in accordance with the changes so that the construction industry of Hong Kong is guided to become a key contributor towards a sustainable society.;Key words: Attitude, Behaviour, Culture, Cultural Shift, Sustainability, Sustainable Construction, Sustainable Culture, Sustainable Society.