Consequences of COVID-19 on jordan's construction sector using data mining techniques

Mujalli, R O; Marie, I and Al-Kasasbeh, M (2024) Consequences of COVID-19 on jordan's construction sector using data mining techniques. International Journal of Construction Management, 24(12), pp. 1339-1348. ISSN 1562-3599

Abstract

Globally, COVID-19 had devastating consequences on the construction sector, but there is a little knowledge of how the pandemic impacted developing nations. This study aims to investigate the job stability of employees in the construction sector and to highlight the factors that negatively affect employment. A survey of 1000 questionnaires was distributed to construction sector personnel and 436 valid responses were returned. Three popular data mining techniques were utilized: binary logistic regression, support vector machine, and Bayesian networks. Twelve models were developed; one binary logistic model, four support vector machine models, and six Bayesian networks models. The results of these models were compared based on accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, precision, recall, F-measure, and ROC Area. As a result, it was found that the method of the Bayesian networks was more effective in modelling the job stability of employees in comparison with the other models. According to our study, craft labourers were most affected in terms of job losses, followed by site engineers, while project managers and contractors were the least affected. The findings highlight the importance of protecting the most vulnerable labourers by revising the current legislation policy initiatives that should concentrate on establishing a better and more sustainable labour market.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: Bayesian networks; construction sector; COVID-19; craft labour; logistic regression
Index terms: modelling, Jordan, labour market, engineer, employment, bayesian network, data mining, pandemic, project manager, logistic regression, construction sector, questionnaire, stability, accuracy, survey, developing nation, COVID-19, legislation, personnel
Subjects: Geography, development economics, professional development, structural engineering, health risk and incident analysis, management, economics, industry analysis, statistical analysis, probabilistic model, profession, data collection methods, legal systems, data science, analytical methods
Topics: Human Resources, Supply Chain Management, International Construction, Legal Issues, Digital Applications, Roles and Professions, Research Practice, Geographical Context, Information Management, Engineering Principles, Health and Safety
Descriptive scope: 5 PCTEA

N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here