ASSESSMENT OF BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION IN THE NIGERIAN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

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Author

Presented To

Department of Environmental Design

ABSTRACT
All the various stages of construction rely on professionals transferring appropriate and relevant information to develop a buildable design that meets the client’s requirements. As the project unfolds and the design is realized, information in the form of drawings, specifications and construction methods must be communicated from one expert to another. This study’s aim to find out the factor that causes communication barriers in the construction industry. A cross sectional descriptive study design was used and 100 professionals from the construction industry were selected using a non-probability convenience sampling technique. Statistical package for social sciences (SPSS Version 20) was used for the analysis. Data was summarized using frequency tables and graphic presentation. Chi-square test was used to test the association between the predictor variable and the outcome variable. P-value was set at P < 0.05. The research sampled 82 professionals working with consultant, project clients and contractors. The research established that within the Nigerian construction industry there have been many barriers to communication on construction project in Nigeria and the inherent factors that influences the occurrence of this barriers was also determine which includes: Badly expressed message, Adopting to the behaviour of a group, Limited vocabulary, Environment, Job dissatisfaction, Pronunciation, Disturbing moment, Religious beliefs, Time schedule pressure, Ethics, Social differences, Body language, Gestures, Ascent, Grammar, and Unconscious incompetence. The relationship between communication barriers and the factors that influences its occurrence was established. Finally the research established that poor communication as a result of barriers to communication had resulted in project delayed, project cost overrun, poor project quality and affects workers safety on site