Enablers of incorporating indoor environmental quality (IEQ) principles into buildings

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aba Essanowa Afful ◽  
Joshua Ayarkwa ◽  
Godwin Kojo Kumi Acquah ◽  
Dickson Osei-Asibey
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Environmental Quality ◽  
Environmental Conservation ◽  
Corporate Image ◽  
Indoor Environmental Quality ◽  
Indoor Environments ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Wide Applicability ◽  
Global Construction ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe aim of this study was to identify these enablers in literature and subsume them under broad categories for the development of a framework showing the interrelationships among the enablers.Design/methodology/approachFifty-four (54) relevant articles were desk reviewed from different construction peer-reviewed journals and published conference proceedings to identify 20 core enablers of incorporating indoor environmental quality (IEQ) into building designs.FindingsThe identified enablers include improved occupants' health, well-being and satisfaction, environmental conservation, high return on investments and co-operative methods of design and construction management among others. To better understand the enablers identified, they were classified into seven main interconnected categories: economic enablers, environmental enablers, occupant and end-user enablers, process enablers, corporate image, culture and vision enablers, client-related enablers and external enablers.Research limitations/implicationsThe interconnectedness brought to the fore a subtler appreciation of the drivers of IEQ, which could help expand current knowledge outside the narrow scope of isolated drivers. The fact that the papers selected in this study are not limited geographically underscores the wide applicability of the findings to the global construction industry.Practical implicationsUnderstanding that the enablers will enhance the adoption and design of quality indoor environments, help in building the capacity of consultants to adopt the design of quality IEs and reduce the impact of construction on the environment.Social implicationsThese identified enablers are not limited geographically and thus could promote the design of quality indoor environments globally, particularly in green building design. To the global construction community, this review presents a list of enablers that would expedite the adoption of principles of IEQ designs in buildings thus taking the global construction industry one more step towards sustainable built forms. Promoting the identified enablers would ultimately steer stakeholders to design and build better indoor environments.Originality/valueThe fact that the papers selected in this study are not limited geographically underscores the wide applicability of the findings to the global construction industry.

Green and sustainable practices in the construction industry

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 1063-1086 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaber Shurrab ◽  
Matloub Hussain ◽  
Mehmood Khan
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Corporate Image ◽  
Performance Model ◽  
Sustainable Construction ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Green Construction ◽  
Sustainable Performance ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to differentiate between sustainable and green construction and significantly contribute to empirical investigations related to the impact of green construction factors on sustainable performance and to test the theory of planned behavior in the construction context and empirically assess green construction factors and the performance model. The model incorporates green construction factors that link construction activities with suppliers and customers to support environmental sustainability. Design/methodology/approach Data collected from 120 construction industry respondents were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis, which identified seven green construction factors. Two conformity factor analysis models were created to test the relationship fitness of the components and measure the impact of green construction factors on the sustainable performance of the construction. Findings The results provide substantial evidence that shows that the adoption of green construction factors by construction firms leads to improved sustainable performance. The overall perspective of respondents within the construction industry, according to the questionnaire survey, shows that the benefits, such as an improved corporate image and sustainable competitive advantage, increase compliance with customers’ expectations within the construction industry. Research limitations/implications This study covered private construction companies and measured the construction industry professional’s feedback without including the clients. Practical implications The results of this study will support the future success of ecological sustainability and green construction initiatives, mainly on enforcement and incentives; moreover, the results of this study will ensure that regulations will cover green practices for all types of projects and will be formally monitored for compliance. Originality/value The originality of this paper stems from drawing boundaries between green and sustainable construction and exploring the impact of green management on the sustainable performance of the construction industry. Most of the related previous works have used the concepts of green and sustainability interchangeably, and there is a lack of studies in this regard, particularly in the construction industry.

The impact of retailers' indoor environmental quality on consumer purchase decision

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Van Thac Dang ◽  
Ninh Nguyen ◽  
Jianming Wang
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Quality ◽  
Purchase Intention ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Indoor Environmental Quality ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Consumer Purchase Intention ◽  
Hedonic Experience ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeA review of 67 articles in the indoor environmental quality (IEQ) literature published from 2010 to 2020 reveals that none of prior studies have determined the IEQ of physical retailers and its impact on consumers. To fill such a gap, this study investigates the influence of physical retailers' IEQ on consumer purchase intention. The mediating roles of hedonic experience and perceived brand value (PBV) in this relationship are also determined. Furthermore, the moderating effect of perceived service quality (PSQ) on the link between physical retailers' IEQ and PBV is clarified in this study.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses structural equation modeling (SEM) to analyze a sample data of 996 consumers in China.FindingsResults show that physical retailers' IEQ has a positive impact on consumer purchase intention. Hedonic experience mediates the link between IEQ and purchase intention. PBV also mediates the relationship between IEQ and purchase intention and that between hedonic experience and purchase intention. In addition, PSQ moderates the relationship between IEQ and PBV.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to determine the impact of IEQ on consumers in the physical retailer context. Specifically, this study enriches our knowledge about the relationship between physical retailers' IEQ and consumer purchase intention with the mediating and moderating mechanisms of hedonic experience, PBV and PSQ. The findings fill the research gaps in the IEQ literature that has ignored the impact of IEQ on consumers' perception and behavioral intention in the physical retailer context. Furthermore, this research provides evidence for retailer managers to understand and improve physical stores' IEQ.

scholarly journals Effect of indoor environmental quality on visual comfort and productivity in office buildings

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amit Kaushik ◽  
Mohammed Arif ◽  
Obas John Ebohon ◽  
Hord Arsalan ◽  
Muhammad Qasim Rana ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Quality ◽  
Office Buildings ◽  
Maximum Effect ◽  
Visual Environment ◽  
Indoor Environmental Quality ◽  
Visual Comfort ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Occupant Comfort ◽  
Statistical Relationships ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The Purpose of this paper is to identify statistical relationships between visual environment and occupant productivity. Visual environment is one of the most important indoor environmental quality (IEQ) parameters, and it directly impacts occupant productivity in offices. The literature outlines the significance of the impact. Still, there is a lack of investigation, statistical analysis and inter-relationships between the independent variables (IEQ factors), especially in the hot and arid climate. Design/methodology/approach This study presents a research study investigating the effects and shows statistical relationships between IEQ on occupant comfort and productivity. The study was conducted in the Middle East, and data was collected for 12 months. It used the response surface analysis to perform analysis. Findings This study outlined seven unique relationships highlighting the recommended range, inter-dependencies. Results include that illumination has maximum effect on visual comfort and temperature, daylight having direct influence and relative humidity, wall type next to the seat and kind of workspace also impact visual comfort and productivity. These findings would help to improve occupant comfort and productivity in office buildings. It is recommended to include results and recommendations on design guidelines for office buildings. Originality/value This study presents the unique effects of non-visual IEQ parameters on visual comfort and productivity. This investigation also provides a unique method to develop the statistical relationship between various indoor environmental factors and productivity in different contexts and buildings.

Trade decomposition of CO2 emissions of global construction industries

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Qun Gao ◽  
Bin Liu ◽  
Jide Sun ◽  
Chunlu Liu ◽  
Youquan Xu
Keyword(s):  
International Trade ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Decomposition Analysis ◽  
Final Demand ◽  
Environmental Pressures ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Construction Products ◽  
Comprehensive Picture ◽  
Global Construction ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis paper aims to clarify the CO2 emissions of global construction industries under the consideration of different patterns of international trade and thus to draw a comprehensive picture for understanding the international paths of CO2 transfer to global construction industries.Design/methodology/approachThis research inventories the CO2 emissions induced by the final demand of 15 economies for construction products and explores the CO2 intensities of these economies based on a multi-regional input–output model. This paper further decomposes CO2 emissions into four components based on different patterns of international trade to estimate the roles of four patterns of international trade in shaping the environmental pressures from global construction industries.FindingsThe results indicate that the CO2 intensities of the construction industries in Russia, India and China were higher than those in other economies, and the CO2 intensities of global construction industries experienced a decline over the years 2000–2014. The decomposition analysis demonstrates that domestic and foreign CO2 emissions accounted for 42.67 and 54.23%, respectively, of the CO2 emissions of the construction industries in the 15 economies during the period 2000–2007. Although the major part of the CO2 emissions of the construction industries come from domestic production systems, the final demand for construction products in the 15 economies caused substantial emissions in other economies. Further decomposition by upstream industrial production source indicates that 58.65% of domestic emissions and 66.53% of foreign emissions can be traced back to the electricity industry.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough the major patterns of CO2 emissions of the construction industry have been identified in this paper, the difficulty of understanding the relationship between upstream production industries or countries and the construction industry deserves more attention in the future research.Originality/valuePrevious research on inventorying CO2 emissions has generally been limited to evaluating the impact of industrial consumption activities on national or global emission accounting, tending to ignore the effects of different international trade patterns on the change in industrial CO2 emissions. This research is the first attempt to account for and decompose the CO2 emissions of global construction industries under consideration of the effects of different patterns of international trade on environmental pressures. The decomposition and upstream industrial distributions of different patterns of CO2 emission provide a comprehensive picture for better understanding of the emission pattern and source of the CO2 emissions of global construction industries. The research outcomes reveal how the final demand of a country for construction products induces CO2 emissions in both domestic and foreign systems, thus providing basic information and references for policy adjustment and strategy design in relation to mitigation of climate change and sustainable development.

An empirical study of the impact of lean construction techniques on sustainable construction in the UK

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oyedolapo Ogunbiyi ◽  
Jack Steven Goulding ◽  
Adebayo Oladapo
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Questionnaire Survey ◽  
Corporate Image ◽  
Lean Construction ◽  
Sustainable Construction ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Percentile Method ◽  
Construction Techniques ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – The contribution of lean construction techniques in sustainable construction cannot be over emphasised, as sustainable development is now enshrined in government policy. In addition, lean construction is now faced with the challenges of sustainable development, continuous improvement, waste elimination, a stronger user focus, increased value for money along with high quality management of projects and supply chains, and improved communications. This paper presents an exploratory study from extant literature and the results of the use of questionnaire survey among construction participants to explore the contribution of implementing lean construction techniques in sustainable construction. Design/methodology/approach – Surveys of UK-based construction professional were conducted. The data collected were analysed with SPSS 19.0 version software using the percentile method, Cronbach ' s α reliability test, Kruskal Wallis test, Kendall ' s coefficient of concordance and one sample t-test. Findings – Results from this study indicate that there are several benefits associated with implementation of lean construction and sustainable construction. The overall perspective of professionals within the construction industry, according to questionnaire survey, shows that benefits such as improved corporate image and sustainable competitive advantage, improved process flow and productivity, improvement in environmental quality and increased compliance with customer ' s expectations are realised following integration of principles of lean construction and sustainable construction within construction industry. Just-in-time, visualisation tool, value analysis, daily huddle meetings and value stream mapping are the most common lean tools/techniques for enabling sustainability. This study also identified several areas of linkage between lean and sustainability such as waste reduction, environmental management, value maximisation, and health and safety improvement among others. Originality/value – The originality of this paper lies in its consideration of lean construction principles to better understand its impact on sustainable construction. This research contributes to the awareness of the benefits that can be derived from the implementation of lean construction in sustainable construction within the construction industry.

The impact of perceived service quality dimensions on customer satisfaction

2017 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 411-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rishi Kant ◽  
Deepak Jaiswal
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Customer Satisfaction ◽  
Service Quality ◽  
Corporate Image ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Perceived Service Quality ◽  
Public Sector Banks ◽  
Quality Dimensions ◽  
Service Quality Dimensions ◽  
The Impact

Purpose In the present competitive scenario in the Indian banking industry, service quality has become one of the most important facets of interest to academic researchers. The purpose of this paper is to determine the dimensions of perceived service quality and investigate their impact on customer satisfaction in the Indian banking context, with special reference to selected public sector banks in India. Design/methodology/approach On the basis of the empirical study, the authors validate a measurement model using structural equation modeling for investigating the impact of perceived service quality dimensions on customer satisfaction. The study sample consists of 480 respondents in the National Capital Region (NCR) of India; the data were collected through a structured questionnaire utilizing a seven-point Likert scale while implementing a purposive sampling technique. Findings The perceived service quality dimensions identified were tangibility, reliability, assurance, responsiveness, empathy, and image. The empirical findings revealed that “responsiveness” was found to be the most significant predictor of customer satisfaction. On the other hand, “image” (corporate image) has a positive but the least significant relationship with customer satisfaction followed by all other constructs. The exception is “reliability,” which is insignificantly related to customer satisfaction in Indian public sector banks. Research limitations/implications The study cannot be generalized in the context of Indian banking sectors, as it only focused on the public sector. The findings of this study suggest that the six dimensions of perceived service quality model are a suitable instrument for evaluating bank service quality for public banks in India. Therefore, bank managers can use this model to assess the bank service quality in the context of Indian public sector banks. Originality/value There is dearth of research focusing on corporate image as a dimension of perceived service quality and its effect on customer satisfaction in the Indian banking context. Furthermore, similar studies were rarely found in the Indian context, especially within the public banking sector. Hence, this paper attempts to accomplish the research gap by empirically testing the satisfaction level of a large sample of the population in NCR toward six dimensions of perceived service quality rendered by selected public sector banks in India.

Rubber specialization vs crop diversification: the roles of perceived risks

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 188-210 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shi Min ◽  
Jikun Huang ◽  
Hermann Waibel
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Tenure ◽  
Risk Perceptions ◽  
Household Wealth ◽  
Environmental Conservation ◽  
Crop Diversification ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Entry Points ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of farmers’ risk perceptions regarding rubber farming on their land use choices, including rubber specialization and crop diversification. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional survey data of some 600 smallholder rubber farmers in Xishuangbanna in Southwest China is employed. This paper develops a general conceptual framework that incorporates a subjective risk item into a model of farmers’ land use choices, thereby developing four econometric models to estimate the role of risk perceptions, and applies instrumental variables to control for the endogeneity of risk perceptions. Findings The results demonstrate that risk perceptions play an important role in smallholders’ decision-making regarding land use strategies to address potential risks in rubber farming. Smallholders with higher risk perceptions specialize in rubber farming less often and are more likely to diversify their land use, thereby contributing to local environmental conservation in terms of agrobiodiversity. The land use choices of smallholder rubber farmers are also associated with ethnicity, household wealth, off-farm employment, land tenure status, altitude and rubber farming experience. Originality/value This study contributes to a better understanding of the implications of farmers’ risk perceptions and shows entry points for improving the sustainability of rubber-based land use systems.

Stakeholder responses toward fast food chains’ CSR

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yeonsoo Kim ◽  
Mari Luz Zapata Ramos
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Social Issue ◽  
Public Relations ◽  
Fast Food ◽  
Corporate Image ◽  
Food Chains ◽  
Supportive Communication ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Health Related ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine how stakeholders perceive the motives behind fast food companies’ public health-related corporate social responsibility (CSR) and general social issue-related CSR initiatives, and their responses toward CSR in terms of supportive communication intent, investment intent, and purchase intent. The authors further examine the impact of perceived CSR motives on intent and whether a healthier chain image has an effect on stakeholder responses. Design/methodology/approach An online experiment was conducted. This study employed a randomized 2 (CSR type: health-related CSR vs generic social issue-related CSR)×2 (chain image: healthier chain vs general fast-food chain) full factorial design using general stakeholder samples. Findings For an ordinary fast food restaurant, generic social issue-related CSR programs elicited significantly more positive perceptions of CSR motives, supportive communication intent and investment intent, than public-health related CSR. When a company has a healthier image, stakeholders do not distinguish between CSR types. Stakeholders perceive both CSR types as stemming from mutually beneficial motives and show neutral to slightly positive reactions to both CSR. A positively perceived CSR motive plays a determinant role in anticipating communication, investment, and purchase intents. Originality/value This is the first study that examines stakeholder perception of motives behind and responses toward fast food chains’ health-related vs generic social issue-related CSR initiatives, in light of corporate image. The study findings help public relations practitioners, public health professionals, parent groups, and legislators understand stakeholders’ reactions toward CSR initiatives in the fast food industry and help them monitor practices for improvements.

Exploring the impact of abusive supervision on employee' voice behavior in Chinese construction industry: a moderated mediation analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Naseer Abbas Khan ◽  
Ali Nawaz Khan
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Work Engagement ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Abusive Supervision ◽  
Mediating Effect ◽  
Psychological Climate ◽  
Employee Voice ◽  
Voice Behavior ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore the impact of abusive supervision on employees' voice in China's construction industry. Moreover, the authors explore the mediating role of ethics-related self-efficacy and work engagement and the moderating influence of psychological climate in explaining the association between abusive supervision and employee voice behavior.Design/methodology/approachThis study used data in pairs collected from 402 supervisors and employees of construction companies in Anhui, China. In this study, the authors used the time-lag approach to collect data in three-time waves from different respondents. A structural equation modeling (SEM) approach was applied to test the hypothesized model.FindingsThe results of this study indicate that there is a significant association between abusive supervision and employee voice. Moreover, the results indicated that work engagement mediated the association between abusive supervision and employees' voice. In contrast, self-efficacy did not mediate the link between abusive supervision and employee voice. Furthermore, results also show that the contingent effect of psychological climate significantly influences the mediating effect of work engagement.Originality/valueThis study also has implications for the construction industry, allowing managers to create a favorable working atmosphere in which employees can reinforce their voices at work.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document