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The construction industry plays a vital role in the urbanization process and global economy, and there is a growing interest in utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to improve sustainability, productivity, and efficiency. However, there is a lack of comprehensive analysis regarding the progression of AI in the construction context, particularly from the sustainability angle. This study aims to fill this gap by conducting a scientometric analysis of AI research in construction by focusing on historical clusters, emerging trends, research clusters, and the correlation between sustainability pillars and key project stages. A Scopus search, between January 2000 and July 2023, was conducted that used 25 construction industry-related keywords, resulting in a total of 9564 publications. After evaluating practical AI applications in construction, 3710 publications were selected for further analysis using VOSviewer for visual diagrams and to further understand connections and patterns between literature. The findings revealed that: (a) Literature on AI in construction has experienced steady growth over the past two decades; (b) Machine learning, deep learning, and big data are seen as the key enabling digital technologies in the construction sector’s performance; (c) Economic and governance pillars of sustainability exhibit the highest potential for AI adoption; (d) Design and construction phases demonstrate substantial advantages for AI adoption; (e) AI technologies have become, despite adoption challenges, a strong driver of construction industry modernization, and; (f) By incorporating AI, the construction industry can advance towards a more sustainable future by consolidating its processes and practices.

Earthmoving operations in the construction process are complex environments that involve interactions between equipment, the workforce, and materials within an overarching construction plan. Over the past two decades, researchers in construction have focused on improving the safety of construction earthmoving equipment due to their omnipresence in the construction environment. Although previous studies have explored safety risks and the causes of accidents involving construction earthmoving equipment, their approaches were common and lacked a comprehensive perspective. Hence, this systematic literature review applies Rasmussen’s (1997) risk management framework using a systems thinking approach to identify and classify the risk factors influencing earthmoving equipment operation safety in construction sites. Utilizing a multistep methodology, this research first identifies 38 risk factors pertinent to earthmoving equipment operations and then classifies them based on systems thinking. Social network analysis (SNA) is employed to analyze the data. The results show that most research on earthmoving equipment safety focuses on monitoring construction sites, but very little on government and regulatory roles. When considering the interdependencies of risk factors, safety training is the most important factor, followed by the largely overlooked earthmoving machinery characteristics and manufacturer’s performance. The results of this review inform both the research community and industry practitioners regarding the less-understood aspects of earthmoving equipment operation safety and future research directions.

Low-income housing plays an important, but frequently overlooked, role in energy use reduction. Barriers persist for low-income households to participate in energy efficiency programs and adopt efficient lifestyles. However, there has been only limited research into energy efficiency barriers faced by low-income households. Existing energy research studies primarily focus on homeowners whose demographic and socio-economic profiles are likely to be very different from low-income households or renters—limiting the applicability of previous findings to low-income households. This study aims to identify and evaluate the importance of the energy efficiency barriers faced by low-income households. A questionnaire survey was conducted with 212 low-income households in Australia. After randomly dividing the data into calibration and validation samples, an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) of the calibration sample identifies four energy efficiency barrier factors of financial, decision-making, information, and split incentives. These four factors are then validated by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the validation sample in terms of goodness-of-fit, reliability, and validity to confirm financial as the most highly rated energy efficiency barrier. This research contributes to bridging the knowledge gap of the energy efficiency barriers of low-income households and providing a validated CFA model as a tool for assessment. The results provide a better understanding of the barriers involved and research evidence to facilitate the formulation of policies to overcome them.

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the control measures implemented by governments have caused serious harm to the physical and mental health of many, including professionals working in the construction industry. As one of the largest industries globally, it is important to examine the psychosocial hazards that occurred during the pandemic and their impacts on the mental health outcomes of construction professionals, especially those working for construction enterprises, as their work tends to be site-based and has been influenced more seriously during the pandemic. This research used a questionnaire to gather data from 531 professionals working in China’s construction industry. Descriptive analysis, Spearman’s correlation analysis, and partial least-squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) were employed to analyze the data. The findings indicate that work–family-related factors were critical psychosocial hazards. Their prevalence rates of depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms are 32.96%, 32.58%, and 16.95%, respectively. Personal factors are the strongest predictors of poor mental health outcomes, especially anxiety, while work–family-related factors are influential on the development of depression symptoms. The findings are unique, as they reveal critical psychosocial hazards that affect the mental health of construction professionals during the pandemic. They provide important theoretical references for governments or construction enterprises to develop disaster management plans in cases of similar public health emergencies in the future.

Coal miners’ unsafe behavior is the primary reason for accidents. This research aims to examine the effect of male coal miners’ shared work crew identity on their safety behavior. A 2-2-1 multilevel mediation model is established based on social identity theory and safety climate theory. To validate the model, a paper-and-pencil survey with male coal miners was carried out in Henan Province, China. A total of 212 valid responses from male coal miners nested in 53 work crews were secured, and Mplus was used to analyze the data. Results show that work crew safety climate fully mediates the effect of male coal miners’ shared work crew identity on their safety behavior. In theory, the findings support that social identity brings a safety climate. In practice, the findings highlight that making safety part of work crew norms improves male coal miners’ safety behavior. Limitations and future research are also discussed.

Previous studies demonstrate that rework can lead to more safety incidents. However, there is an inadequate understanding of how construction rework reduction measures may significantly decrease the likelihood of safety incidents in developing countries. To explore how construction organisations can integrate rework minimisation and safety management in practice, this study examines the effectiveness of the management strategies that can reduce rework and improve safety. Based on a two-stage detailed literature review of both rework- and safety-related studies, 13 managerial measures are recognised that are capable of jointly reducing rework and safety incidents for construction projects. A field survey involving construction professionals in Malaysia was used to analyse and rank these measures according to effectiveness indices for rework, safety and joint rework-safety management. Factor analysis yielded a two-factor solution comprising (1) project management best practices and (2) proactive competency management. It is suggested that the construction industry would benefit from simultaneously ameliorating the quality and safety performance of projects by adopting effective joint measures that are predominantly guided by process (best practices) and people (competency management) components.

Work-related stress in the construction industry increases the prevalence of depression and anxiety among personnel. In low-resource settings such as Nigeria, construction personnel face high demands and severe working conditions but only have a few services to address their mental health needs. With emerging research showing that digital interventions can be used to self-manage mental health across diverse settings, there may be new opportunities to support construction personnel in the construction industry. This study aims to determine the use of digital interventions for mental health management among construction personnel in Nigeria and to explore the factors that facilitate or impede the use of these interventions. This qualitative study explored the perspectives of a convenience sample of 62 construction personnel. The data were subjected to inductive content analysis. A total of 6 barrier and 3 motivator themes were identified and categorized into 2 groups. The barrier themes were subcategorized into barriers to adoption and barriers to persistent use, whereas the motivator themes were subcategorized into intrinsic and extrinsic motivators. Lack of awareness and knowledge about the interventions may constitute a barrier to adoption and use. Participants frequently reported concerns regarding their effectiveness and usability. This study provides an understanding of the design needs required to facilitate sustained self-management of mental health based on the experiences and expectations of construction personnel with digital interventions.

In many countries, it is common practice to attract and employ ethnic minority (EM) or migrant workers in the construction industry. This primarily occurs in order to alleviate the labor shortage caused by an aging workforce with a lack of new entrants. Statistics show that EM construction workers are more likely to have occupational fatal and nonfatal injuries than their local counterparts; however, the mechanism underlying accidents and injuries in this vulnerable population has been rarely examined. This study aims to investigate relationships among safety climate, safety behavior, and safety outcomes for EM construction workers. To this end, a theoretical research model was developed based on a comprehensive review of the current literature. In total, 289 valid questionnaires were collected face-to-face from 223 Nepalese construction workers and 56 Pakistani construction workers working on 15 construction sites in Hong Kong. Structural equation modelling was employed to validate the constructs and test the hypothesized model. Results show that there were significant positive relationships between safety climate and safety behaviors, and significant negative relationships between safety behaviors and safety outcomes for EM construction workers. This research contributes to the literature regarding EM workers by providing empirical evidence of the mechanisms by which safety climate affects safety behaviors and outcomes. It also provides insights in order to help the key stakeholders formulate safety strategies for EM workers in many areas where numerous EM workers are employed, such as in the U.S., the UK, Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Middle East.

Increasing the adoption of energy-efficiency measures (EEM) by households is one of the practical strategies to increase energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. For the 3.24 million low-income households in Australia, partly due to their potentially disproportionately large waste of usable energy, there is a gap between the potential for energy efficiency through existing EEM and the actual energy-efficiency level. Many measures increase energy efficiency in buildings; however, barriers persist for such households to adopt these measures, of which limited research has yet to be conducted. In response, this study examines the relationships involved by a questionnaire survey of 212 low-income households in Australia, showing that financial barriers have the greatest influence followed by split incentive barriers, with the provision of information having no significant role to play. This paper contributes to filling the gap of limited energy-efficiency research involving low-income households, revealing the effect of energy-efficiency barriers on their adoption of EEM.

Purpose Malaysia’s industrialised building system (IBS) has been increasingly adopted for sustainable development by the country’s construction industry. However, although it has been used for commercial building projects, its application to sustainable infrastructure development has been limited to date. This study aims to examine the drivers and challenges involved. Design/methodology/approach A preliminary conceptual framework was initially developed based on a systematic literature review. Semi-structured interviews involving 20 participants were undertaken to gain insightful thoughts from the construction practitioners to discover the perception towards IBS application in the construction industry, the applicability of IBS, particularly in infrastructure projects, the strategies of IBS delivery and the sustainable potential of its application. A two-round Delphi study was conducted with 15 experienced and knowledgeable panellists to further identify, verify and prioritise factors developed from the literature review and interview findings. Then, the results were synthesised and triangulated to demonstrate a holistic insight. Findings The results show the main drivers to be better productivity, quality, environmental, safety and health, constructability design and cost, policy and requirements, with the main challenges being project planning and cost-related issues, inexperience and industry capacity. Originality/value The study’s main contribution is in systematically determining the practical implications involved in applying the IBS to sustainable infrastructure developments in Malaysia and other similar developing countries.