Studying the relationship between causes and effects of poor communication in construction projects using PLS-SEM approach

Yaser Gamil,Ismail Abd Rahman

doi:10.1108/jfm-04-2021-0039

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop a structural relationship model to study the relationship between causes and effects of poor communication and information exchange in construction projects using Smart-PLS.Design/methodology/approachThe first method of this research is to identify the causes and effects factors of poor communication in construction projects from the extant of literature. The data used to develop the model was collected using a questionnaire survey, which targeted construction practitioners in the Malaysian construction industry. A five-point Likert type scale was used to rate the significance of the factors. The factors were classified under their relevant construct/group using exploratory factor analysis. A hypothetical model was developed and then transformed into Smart-PLS in which the hypothetical model suggested that each group of the cause factors has a direct impact on the effect groups. The hypothesis was tested using t-values and p-values. The model was assessed for its inner and outer components and achieved the threshold criterion. Further, the model was verified by engaging 14 construction experts to verify its applicability in the construction project setting.FindingsThe study developed a structural equation model to clarify the relationships between causes and effects of poor communication in construction projects. The model explained the degree of relationships among causes and effects of poor communication in construction projects.Originality/valueThe published academic and non-academic literature introduced many studies on the issue of communication including the definitions, importance, barriers to effective communication and means of poor communication. However, these studies ended up only on the general issue of communication lacking an in-depth investigation of the causes and effects of poor communication in the construction industry. The study implemented advanced structural modeling to study the causes and effects. The questionnaire, the data and concluding results fill the identified research gap of this study. The addressed issue is also of interest because communication is considered one of the main knowledge areas in construction management.

Highlights

The success of communication in the construction project is essential to produce a successful collaboration and understanding between project parties, which eventually leads to satisfying project completion (Dainty et al, 2007; Hair et al, 2021)
This article introduced the development of the partial least square (PLS)-structural equation model (SEM) model of cause-and-effect factors of poor communication in the construction industry using Smart-PLS 3 which is used to study the relationship among causes and effects, which has been identified from previously published literature (Gamil and Rahman, 2017)
The hypothetical model consists of 12 hypotheses and 7 constructs which 4 of them are considered as independent cause factors and 3 as dependent effect factors

Summary

Introduction

The success of communication in the construction project is essential to produce a successful collaboration and understanding between project parties, which eventually leads to satisfying project completion (Dainty et al, 2007; Hair et al, 2021). The project management body of knowledge (Guide, 2001) considers communication as a significant component of the project, which plays an essential role in information exchange and mutual collaboration among construction parties. Ineffective, poor and substandard communication among construction parties leads to many undesirable sequences, such as dispute and failure of the project (Hossain, 2009). It is a significant source of many other negative impacts to project performance and quality (Henderson et al, 2016). This article aimed to use the data to develop a structural equation model (SEM) to study the relationships between causes and effects of poor communication in construction projects

Objectives

Findings

Discussion

Conclusion