Research Methods for Construction

Richard Fellows is Emeritus Professor of Construction Business Management, Loughborough University, UK. He is an experienced quantity surveyor and in his academic career has taught at several universities in the UK and other countries. His research interests concern economics, contracts and law, and the management of people in construction - especially cultural issues as drivers of behaviour and performance. He was a founder and for many years was joint coordinator of the CIB group, W112 - Culture in Construction. Richard is an editor of a leading construction journal and frequent reviewer of papers for international conferences and journals.Anita Liu graduated from the University of Reading and returned to Hong Kong to work in a quantity surveying consultancy, for the Hong Kong government, and for a major contractor. She then moved into academia, obtaining an MSc and a PhD from the University of Hong Kong. She became Chair Professor of Commercial Management and Quantity Surveying at Loughborough University and subsequently Head of Department and Professor in the Department of Real Estate and Construction at The University of Hong Kong. She was also joint co-coordinator of CIB group W112: Culture in Construction.

• ContentsAbout the Authors ixPreface to the Fifth Edition xiPart 1 Producing a Proposal 11 Introduction 31.1 The concept of research 31.1.1 Research: a careful search/investigation 41.1.2 Research: contribution to knowledge 41.1.3 A learning process 61.1.4 Contextual factors affecting research 61.2 Classifications of research 71.2.1 Pure and applied research 71.2.2 Quantitative and qualitative research 81.2.3 Other categories of research 111.3 Theories and paradigms 121.3.1 Development of knowledge 131.3.2 Testing a theory 161.3.3 Paradigms 191.3.4 Positivism 201.3.5 Interpretivism 211.3.6 Pragmatism 231.3.7 Models and hypotheses 231.4 Research styles 251.4.1 Action research 251.4.2 Ethnographic research 261.4.3 Surveys 271.4.4 Case studies 281.4.5 Experiments 291.5 Quantitative and qualitative approaches 311.5.1 Quantitative approaches 321.5.2 Qualitative approaches 321.5.3 Triangulated studies 321.5.4 Data sources 331.6 Where to begin 351.7 Summary 36References 372 Topic for Study 412.1 Selection of a topic 412.1.1 Resources 412.1.2 Subject selection 432.1.3 Choosing a topic 462.1.4 Evaluating alternatives 462.1.5 Refining a topic 472.2 Writing the proposal 482.2.1 Aim 492.2.2 Proposition 492.2.3 Objectives 502.2.4 Hypotheses 512.2.5 Methodology and methods 532.2.6 Programme 552.2.7 Deliverables and industrial or practitioner support 552.3 Summary 56References 56Part 2 Executing the Research 593 Initial Research 613.1 The research process 613.1.1 Initial phase 643.1.2 Data and information 663.1.3 Dynamic process 683.2 Initial search 693.2.1 Definitions and assumptions 713.2.2 Theory and literature reviews 713.2.3 Analysing data from a search 723.3 Literature based discovery 753.4 Assembling the theoretical framework 763.4.1 Theory borrowing 793.4.2 Theorising 833.5 Philosophy and paradigms 843.5.1 Ontology, epistemology, and axiology 863.5.2 Positivism 883.5.3 Realism 893.5.4 Interpretivism 913.5.5 Constructivism 923.5.6 Phenomenalism 933.5.7 Postmodernism 953.5.8 Pragmatism 963.6 Fuzzy thinking 963.7 Theoretical models and constructs 973.7.1 Theoretical model 983.7.2 Constructs 1003.8 Proper referencing 1013.9 Summary 103Notes 104References 1044 Approaches to Empirical Work 1104.1 Starting data collection 1104.2 Experience 1114.3 Reasoning and inference 1124.3.1 Sensemaking 1144.3.2 Motivated reasoning 1154.3.3 Determinism and stochasticism 1174.3.4 Complexity 1194.4 Systems of methods 1224.5 Research design 1234.5.1 Context 1264.5.2 Variance and errors 1264.5.3 Empiricism, rationalism, and verification 1274.6 Qualitative and quantitative approaches 1294.6.1 When are qualitative approaches employed? 1304.6.2 When are quantitative approaches employed? 1344.7 Experimental 1354.7.1 Experiments and quasi-experiments 1354.7.2 Variables 1384.7.3 Experimental control 1414.7.4 Replication 1424.7.5 Between-subjects design (simple randomised experiments) 1434.7.6 Between-subjects design (matched randomised groups) 1434.7.7 Within-subject design (repeated measure design) 1444.7.8 Factorial experiments 1454.8 Survey 1454.9 Secondary 1474.9.1 Archival 1494.9.2 Meta-analysis 1504.10 Case study 1514.11 Ethnographic 1554.11.1 Ethnography 1564.11.2 Ethnomethodology 1584.12 Action 1584.13 Grounded theory (development of theory from data) 1594.14 Narrative 1624.15 Modelling 1634.15.1 Classification of models 1634.15.2 Deterministic and stochastic models 1644.15.3 The modelling process 1654.16 Simulation 1664.16.1 Dynamism 1664.16.2 Heuristics 1664.16.3 Approaches 1674.17 Level of research 1684.18 Practice-based research 1714.19 Summary 175References 1765 Hypotheses 1825.1 Essentials of a valid hypothesis 1825.2 Roles of hypotheses 1855.3 Objective testing of hypotheses 1875.4 Role of sampling 1885.5 Common statistical measures 1915.5.1 Normal distribution 1965.6 Null hypotheses 1985.7 Validities 1995.8 Summary 202References 2026 Data Collection 2046.1 Data requirements 2046.2 Sources of quantitative data 2076.3 Collecting data from respondents 2106.3.1 Questionnaires 2136.3.2 Interviews 2156.4 Case studies 2186.5 Triangulation 2186.6 Sampling 2196.6.1 Sample size 2236.7 Scales of measurement 2276.7.1 Scaling techniques (non-metric and metric) 2296.7.2 Non-comparative (metric) scales 2296.7.3 Comparative (non-metric) scales 2306.7.4 Common scaling methods 2316.7.5 Development of multi-item scales 2336.8 Obtaining data 2356.9 Translation 2436.10 Response styles and biases 2446.11 Summary 246References 2477 Data Analysis 2517.1 Analysing data 2517.2 Plotting data 2567.3 Statistical methods 2607.4 Non-parametric tests 2617.4.1 Sign test 2617.4.2 Rank-sum tests 2627.4.3 Chi-square (𝜒2) test 2667.4.4 Goodness of fit 2677.5 Parametric tests 2677.5.1 t-Test 2687.5.2 Analysis of variance (ANOVA) 2687.5.3 Regression and correlation 2717.5.4 Multiple regression 2767.5.5 Time series 2777.5.6 Index numbers 2827.5.7 Simple average index 2837.5.8 Chained index 2877.6 Other analytical techniques 2897.6.1 Cluster analysis 2897.6.2 Factor analysis 2907.6.3 Path analysis 2927.6.4 Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) 2957.7 Analysis of qualitative data 2967.7.1 Analysing documents (from texts) 2977.7.2 Conversation analysis 2997.7.3 Discourse analysis 3007.7.4 Social network analysis 3017.7.5 Multi-level research 3037.7.6 Meta-analysis 3047.7.7 Longitudinal research 3047.8 Summary 305References 3068 Ethics in Research 3108.1 The concepts of morals and ethics 3108.2 Research ethics 3148.2.1 Theory and literature 3178.2.2 Data collection, use, and disposal 3188.3 Data analysis, intellectual property, and data protection 3208.3.1 Data analysis, results, and reporting 3208.3.2 Intellectual property 3228.3.3 Data protection 3228.4 Equality, diversity, and inclusion 3238.5 Summary 327References 328Part 3 Reporting the Results 3319 Results, Inferences, and Conclusions 3339.1 Requirements for valid results 3339.2 Potential sources of error 3349.3 Reliability 3359.4 Results 3369.4.1 Producing the results 3369.4.2 Introductory results 3379.4.3 Substantive results 3389.4.4 Inferences 3399.4.5 Causal relationships 3409.4.6 Interpretation 3419.5 Conclusions 3459.5.1 How to write conclusions 3459.5.2 Further research 3479.6 Summary 347References 34810 Reports and Presentations 34910.1 Report production 34910.2 Communication 35010.3 Contents of the report 35210.3.1 How to begin 35210.3.2 Text of the report 35310.3.3 Theory and literature 35410.3.4 Reporting on methodology and methods 35610.3.5 Reporting on data sourcing and data collection 35610.3.6 Presentation of results 35710.3.7 Discussion of results 35810.3.8 Conclusions 35810.3.9 Limitations 35910.3.10 Recommendations 35910.3.11 Introduction 36010.3.12 Remainder of the report 36010.4 Oral presentation 36110.5 Summary 362References 362Index 363