Using secondary data in research on social sustainability in construction project management: a transition from “interview society” to “project-as-practice”
Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management
ISSN: 0969-9988
Article publication date: 3 May 2022
Issue publication date: 27 November 2023
Abstract
Purpose
Access to unbiased self-reported (primary) data for a normative concept like social sustainability has been a challenge for construction project management (CPM) scholars, and this difficulty has been further amplified by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This paper aims to address this issue by asserting the suitability of secondary data as a methodologically sound but underutilized alternative and providing directions for secondary data-based research on social sustainability in a project setting.
Design/methodology/approach
By drawing on a framework for social sustainability and using “project-as-practice” approach as its point of departure, this conceptual paper identifies possibilities for utilizing multiple secondary sources in CPM research.
Findings
The paper provides a roadmap for identification of secondary sources, access to data, potential research designs and methods, limitations of and cautions in using secondary sources, and points to many novel lines of empirical enquiries to stimulate secondary data-based research on social sustainability in CPM.
Social implications
Indicated secondary sources and empirical opportunities can support research efforts that aim to promote societal welfare through construction projects.
Originality/value
The presented guidance will assist researchers in identifying, accessing and utilizing naturalistic, secondary data for designing and conducting empirical research that cuts across social sustainability and CPM. This, in turn, will facilitate methodological pluralism and “practice turn” in such research endeavors.
Keywords
Citation
Goel, A. (2023), "Using secondary data in research on social sustainability in construction project management: a transition from “interview society” to “project-as-practice”", Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, Vol. 30 No. 9, pp. 3858-3875. https://doi.org/10.1108/ECAM-10-2021-0905
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited