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3.6independent Questionnaire Fifteen Female Graduates In Commercial ...


3.6Independent Questionnaire
Fifteen female graduates in Commercial Management; Quantity Surveying; and Architecture working in their relevant areas of the construction industry were asked to complete a 7 question survey. The results are presented below.
1. Do you think it is harder for women to succeed in the construction industry?
Yes45%No55%
2. When you began your career did you expect to encounter prejudice or discrimination in your workplace?
Yes75%No25%
3. During your years at university did you experience what you would call prejudice or discrimination from male colleagues?
Yes35%No65%
4. Have you experienced prejudice or discrimination in your present job?
Yes60%No40%
5. Would you say that male attitudes predominate your workplace and that you have to be more assertive than you might be in a different job?
Yes78%No22%
6. Do you feel comfortable and emotionally secure in your present job?
Yes20%No80%
7. Do you think it is the responsibility of universities or construction companies to combat prejudice?
Universities20%
Construction companies50%
Both30%
Chapter Four
4.1 Interpretation of statistics
Half of respondents said it was the responsibility of construction companies to eradicate prejudice in the work place, while just under a quarter said that universities could help to ease the problem. Just over half said that they thought it was harder for women to succeed in the industry, which does not suggest that women are not right for the job, or that they cannot achieve high status.
In general, the responses were quite positive. All respondents had only worked in their fields for under a year, whereas of those in the case study only 9% had worked in the industry for under a year. This may explain why the Hill McGlynn responses were more negative: respondents based their opinions on a longer time period which was not necessarily influenced by recent efforts to alleviate prejudice. This older sample would also account for the low percentage of women respondents in the Architectural profession, as the secondary research for this study shows that it is only recently that the numbers of women entering Architecture have begun to significantly increase.
A high percentage of the Hill McGlynn respondents said they had experienced sexism in their career. However, the research suffers from not pursuing this statistic further. The questionnaire used for this study is useful as it illuminates the scope for education on equality at university level as well as within the industry itself.
Findings from the case study and the questionnaire suggest that women might have to accept that the construction workplace is an emotionally demanding environment. Over three quarters of respondents of the questionnaire said that they had to be more assertive in their working environment, which was predominantly male.


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