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Effects of workers motivation on construction productivity / Adebowale Oluseyi J. and Fapohunda Julius Ayodeji
Get PDFThe issue of construction workers motivation becomes a subject of debate among construction project management professionals. Therefore, there are diverse opinions on whether motivation of construction workers positively impacts construction workers performance or rather adversely
affects the general performance of construction labours. This brings about different motivation concepts and principle by researchers towards improvement of construction workforce performance. The paper takes into cognisance the perception of construction practitioners on motivation in relation with construction productivity towards achieving construction project objectives. In order to obtain a viable result of the study, the study adopts quantitative research approach on construction workforce
motivation with project managers, contract managers, site managers, contractors, and site supervisors. Quantitative data obtained was analysed with SPSS statistical tools. The perception of construction practitioners was explored on motivation drives of construction workforce. However, it was
found that motivation is important for construction workers performance, giving bonus to workers is important to improve workers efficiency and there is a need for construction workers recognition by management. The adequate application of recommendation of this study will enhance construction labour productivity, reduce wastes in construction, improve general construction performance and ultimately heightens customer's satisfaction
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
A multi-stakeholder approach to productivity improvement in the South African construction industry
Get PDFAs poor productivity in construction continues to constitute a setback to projects’ success in different countries of the world, the situation in South African construction is no exception. Poor productivity on construction projects and its detrimental impact on project objectives have continually resonated for decades. As a result, several strategies, interventions, and measures that aimed at improving productivity in the construction sector have been proposed. Nevertheless, the phenomenon importunately creates a major challenge on construction projects, and by extension, the construction industry especially in developing countries. Even when construction management literature acknowledged the commonalities in productivity influences, the practice of addressing construction productivity influences as separate entities has gained much relevance over the years. Taking into perspective, the multidisciplinary and complexity inherent in construction, a systemic approach to addressing construction productivity influences is fast becoming essential. This study addressed productivity-influencing factors by considering factors that are related to rework, shortage of construction resources, constructability, political, socio-economic, working environment, welfare conditions, disputes, planning and training. Consequently, the interdependencies of the most significant productivity-influencing factors in South African construction was developed in the form of a qualitative model. The study adopts the underlying assumptions of the quantitative approach, but also accepts some qualitative data. With regards to the subject of enquiry, the paradigm of the research is positivism which consists of realists’ ontological prescriptions and objectivists’ epistemological prescriptions. Site engineers, site managers, and site supervisors working for cidb registered contractors in four South African provinces constitute the sample stratum. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24 was used to analyse the data gathered from these project participants; both descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Descriptive statistics was used to summarise and describe the data obtained, while inferential statistics in the form of analysis of variance, T-test, and Tukey post hoc test were adopted. The study reported the most significant factors which negatively influence productivity on South African construction projects as inadequate workers’ skills, defective workmanship, the practice of awarding contracts to lowest bidders, political activities resulting in industrial action, inadequate contractors’ experience in project planning, payment delays by contractors, and corruption. Furthermore, it was found that contractors largely share similar perceptions regarding the factors that constrain productivity growth in South African construction. The approximate level of labour, material, and plant productivity on South African construction projects is 50.4%, 72.9%, and 62.0% respectively, while the approximate multifactor productivity was estimated as 61.8%. The study concluded that productivity has a considerable relationship with time and cost and a less potent relationship with quality. Based on the research findings, contractors’, consultants’, clients’ and government qualitative intervention models were proposed while recommendations towards improving South African construction productivity were made. The study recommended the reinvention of the apprentice training system to develop skills in construction, the involvement of stakeholders in improving workers’ skills, improved collaboration between the construction industry and higher institutions of learning regarding curricula development, adequate supervision of construction activities to mitigate the propagation of rework on construction projects, character in leadership, and integrity of project stakeholders
Framework for effective management of the construction workforce towards enhancement of labour efficiency during the building production process in South Africa
No full textThesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree
Master of Technology: Construction Management in the Faculty of Engineering
at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology
2014The study investigates the predominant factors that adversely affect the efficiency of construction labour in the South African construction industry.
There is a significant number of studies on construction labour efficiency and productivity. Nonetheless, construction labour efficiency in developed and developing nations is widely reported to be inadequate, and thus adversely impacts the delivery of construction projects. Adequate utilisation of basic construction resources (construction materials and machinery) is significantly dependent on the efficiency of human assets in the construction industry. Hence, the utilisation of construction resources to achieve project objectives in the construction sector cannot be disconnected from the efficiency of construction employees. As a result, the study identified five objectives directed towards improving the efficiency of employees in the construction industry. The first objective identified construction-related factors affecting construction workers’ efficiency; the second objective highlighted design-related factors reducing the efficiency of construction labour; the third identified the impact of construction resources on construction labour efficiency; and the fourth ascertained the external factors affecting the efficiency of human assets in the construction industry. Finally, the last objective is directed towards developing a framework for improving the efficiency of the South African construction workforce.
The research adopted a mixed methodological approach, utilising a quantitative questionnaire completed by construction professionals (architects, quantity surveyors, site engineers, project managers, contract managers and site manager). Due to the high level of awareness of site supervisors on labour performance in construction, the quantitative data obtained from construction professionals was subsequently validated using semi-structured interviews with site supervisors. The research questionnaire was designed to elicit the perceptions of construction professionals on various identified factors affecting construction workers’ efficiency on Gauteng and Western Cape construction sites in South Africa.
With the aid of 35 unstructured questionnaire surveys, an exploratory study was undertaken within construction firms in Cape Town to ensure the validity of research instruments, where the inputs and comments of respondents were duly considered in formulating the questionnaire for the main study. In the main study, two hundred and sixty-five (265) questionnaires were administered via hand-delivered and electronic mail to construction professionals in the Western Cape and Gauteng
provinces, South Africa. Sixty-two (62) questionnaires (23.39%) were duly completed, returned and analysed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. Cronbach's alpha coefficient reliability test was subsequently conducted on scaled research questions to ensure reliability of the research questionnaire.
The findings revealed that the major factors contributing to the shortfall of construction workers’ performance include; missing details in architectural working drawings, the communication ability of site managers, site managers’ coordinating skills, the effect of strikes on construction operations, the planning ability of site managers, slow response of architects to drawing questions, slow response of structural engineers to drawing questions, construction skills of site supervisors and, finally, shortages of construction materials. Improved construction productivity is a product of construction labour efficiency and enables the achievement of construction project objectives. Therefore, an adequate implementation of the framework presented in this study will not only enhance construction labour efficiency and heighten construction productivity during building production process, but will also increase the satisfaction of construction stakeholder on Gauteng and Western Cape construction projects
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Get PDFWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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