Analysis of Homeowners’ Behaviours in Housing Maintenance

Abstract

The demand for sustainable buildings is driven by increasing energy and water costs, high reduction of carbon emission and pollutions, and the need for social integration. Sustainability requirements in buildings are intensifying the need for building maintenance. However, attempts to increase ‘sustainable maintenance practices’ in residential buildings have not yielded positive results, yet the behavioural components in maintenance are considered to have the potential to increase household sustainable maintenance practices. This study explores the behaviours of homeowners to motivate the demand side in the sustainable supply chain and marketplace. This study based on a cross-sectional survey questionnaire found that 95% of the survey respondents measured that 16 ‘incentives’ would facilitate homeholders’ engagements with sustainable maintenance practices. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy indicated that the strength of the relationships among the variables were very strong (KMO=0.879). Bartlett's test of sphericity, which tests the overall significance of all the correlations within the correlation matrix, was significant X2 (120) = 1057.557, p<0.001). The major incentives that would stimulate homeowners to practice sustainable maintenance are increase in regulations on manufacture and sales of eco-friendly products, the setting of sustainable maintenance standards for the maintenance organisaton/department. The self-belief that the increasing destruction of the environment is a serious threat to sustainability was found to be incentive to engage on sustainable maintenance practices by the homeowners. A conceptual maintenance behavioural model was presented to encourage sustainable maintenance practice among homeowners. With the model it was demonstrated that technical sustainability depends on non-technical sustainability to succeed. This study contributes original information on the need for qualitative aspects in maintenance management market. Facilities managers, maintenance managers and clients could use this information to enhance their maintenance service delivery. The results suggest many complex maintenance behavioural factors could enable householders make sustainability choices. It will provide feedback and feed ward loops to designers. These results may be relevant to the housing market in other countries.