Crisis management in building projects: a longitudinal investigation of communication and behaviour patterns within a grounded theory framework

Patterns of behaviour and communication emerge within a construction project organisation in response to a crisis. This research investigates the nature of these patterns, the forces which shape them and their relationship with crisis management efficiency. The investigation is conducted within the construction stage of traditionally procured building projects and takes the building client's perspective. The research methodology combines qualitative and quantitative methods across four case studies within a grounded theory framework. Particular emphasis is placed upon studying people in the context of their full social networks as they emerge over time. To this end, data is collected longitudinally and from a wide range of perspectives. The patterns of behaviour and communication which emerge during a crisis are highlighted by combining the techniques of social network analysis and content analysis. The project concludes by proposing a grounded theory of construction crisis management which consists of four parts. The first part conceives crisis management as a process of social adjustment where conflicting interest groups seek to exercise power in the pursuit of social structures which suit their interests. The second part sees the crisis management process as a period of behavioural instability and conflict arising out of tensions between the forces of maintenance and change. The third part envisages social structure as an important influence upon crisis management efficiency in determining the efficiency of information flow between those involved. Finally, part four points to the tendency of construction crises to simultaneously generate two diametric managerial conditions. That is, conditions which are conducive or threatening to efficient crisis management.