Project delivery attributes influencing green building project outcomes: A review and future research directions
Built Environment Project and Asset Management
ISSN: 2044-124X
Article publication date: 16 November 2017
Abstract
Purpose
While the general trends in green building (GB) research are known, there is not yet a detailed review of studies on project delivery attributes (PDAs) influencing GB project outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to review the literature to understand the contributions of existing research in this area and to identify the challenges, gaps, and lessons for the future research relating GB project delivery.
Design/methodology/approach
For the systematic review, specially developed coding based on Boolean operators is used to search for relevant studies in major databases, i.e. Web of Science and Scopus. The studies from the initial search (443) are subjected to two rounds of scrutiny for shortlisting only relevant publications. Using a qualitative review of the shortlisted studies (20), the research objectives and findings of the studies are synthesized and critically analyzed. The contributions and challenges facing research in this area are identified. Future research directions are proposed.
Findings
Studies in the area have established association between PDAs and various GB project success criteria. In the literature, some PDAs such as project delivery method have been given greater attention than others. Challenges facing PDA research in GB include: the limited number of GB project cases and the complexity of GB project delivery process involving an overwhelmingly large number of variables, thereby limiting scientific rigor and creating some gaps in knowledge. The interaction among PDAs and their cumulative effect on various project performance outcomes/metrics have not been studied, limiting the validity of the existing studies. Scope exists to apply a combination of non-linear, dynamic, probabilistic, explicit, and implicit modeling as well as inductive and deductive approaches to research in this area.
Research limitations/implications
Existing research findings have limited application in practice. Non-linear, dynamic, probabilistic, deductive, and inductive research techniques and approaches can substantially advance knowledge and lead to plausible findings that can be applied in practice.
Originality/value
Considering the critical role of PDAs in the successful delivery of GBs, the review provides clear directions for future research.
Keywords
Citation
Ahmad, T. and Aibinu, A.A. (2017), "Project delivery attributes influencing green building project outcomes: A review and future research directions", Built Environment Project and Asset Management, Vol. 7 No. 5, pp. 471-489. https://doi.org/10.1108/BEPAM-11-2016-0066
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited