Abstract:
The objective of this study was to analyse the opinions of foreign administrators
towards the personality and professional performance of Thai industrial engineers. The
data were gathered from a total of 187 foreign administrators, of which 139 were
Japanese and 48 were American. The research instrument was a 5 – point questionnaire
scale constructed by the researcher.
The finding suggested that the Japanese and American administrators described
the most specific characteristic found in Thai engineers as being polite. Other
characteristics at the high consensus level were sympathetic, industrious, having a
considerate feeling, kind, honest, forth coming, enthusiastic, hard-working, responsible.
Negative characteristics included: lack of flexibility, over self-confidence, shirking
responsibility, not listening to others’ opinion, believing everything they hear, impatient,
critical of others, aggressive, not accepting secondary treatment and short-tempered. The
following characteristics were less commonly found in Thai engineers. : looking down on
others, hard working, getting annoyed easily, carefulness, creativity in duty.
The Japanese administrators suggested that the following characteristics were
less likely to be found in Thai engineers. These were creative thinking, systematic
problem-solving, having good technical skills, meeting deadline, considering public
benefits, respect for team work, and taking responsibility. Based on the Japanese
administrator’s view, the development of knowledge was needed for the Thai engineers, while
American administrators reported that the improvement of the working pattern was significant
for the Thai engineers.
The Japanese administrator’s viewpoint on positive characteristics of Thai
engineers focused on personal characteristics such as diligence. In contrast, The
American administrators tended to emphasise the need for strong teamwork skills.