The impact of project environmental practices on environmental and organizational performance in the construction industry

Abstract

Purpose

Scholars and practitioners have recognized the significance of integrating environmental practices into project context. This paper focuses on project environmental practices (PEP) and identifies PEP from the life cycle perspective, which includes green design, green procurement, green construction and investment recovery. The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the relationship among the four aspects of PEP and their effects on environmental performance and organizational performance.

Design/methodology/approach

A theoretical model was established and several hypotheses were developed. This study applied a survey method to test the hypothesized relationships. Based on a sample of 159 respondents, partial least squares structural equation modeling analyses were conducted.

Findings

The results show that green design has a positive impact on green procurement, green construction and investment recovery. Green procurement is also confirmed to positively influence green construction. Further, green construction and investment recovery have a direct and positive impact on environmental and organizational performance, whereas green design and green procurement influence environmental and organizational performance indirectly through green construction. Environmental performance has a significant impact on organizational performance.

Originality/value

This study enhances the understanding on PEP by revealing the inter-relationships among its four aspects and establishes the links between PEP and performance outcomes. The findings will contribute to the literature on the integration of environmental principles and project context.

Citation

Li, Y., Xu, L., Sun, T. and Ding, R. (2020), "The impact of project environmental practices on environmental and organizational performance in the construction industry", International Journal of Managing Projects in Business, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 367-387. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJMPB-07-2018-0137