Li, L; Wang, S; Zeng, S; Ma, H and Zheng, R (2025) Unveiling the social responsibility factors in new infrastructure construction. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 32(4), pp. 2272-2298. ISSN 0969-9988
Abstract
Purpose: Social responsibility (SR) has become critical in facilitating the sustainability of new infrastructure construction (NIC) and is also a nonnegligible aspect in its management. Although studies attempting to explore this issue from various and disparate perspectives have become increasingly popular, no consensus has yet been reached regarding what SR factors affect NIC management. This paper aims to establish an inventory of SR factors for NIC and reveal a comprehensive framework for SR of NIC (NIC-SR) management through an in-depth analysis of the relationships among factors. Design/methodology/approach: This article proposes a mixed-review method that combines the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses and content analysis methods as a solution. Findings: From 62 chosen publications on NIC-SR published in peer-reviewed journals between 2010 and 2022, a total of 44 SR factors were found. These 44 SR factors were divided into 4 interconnected categories: political, ethics-environmental, legal and economic. Based on the interactions among SR factors and incorporating the impact of the four categories of SR factors on NIC management, an integrated framework from micro to macro was developed. Originality/value: This paper educates researchers and practitioners about the SR factors that must be considered to improve the sustainability of NIC management and provides practical implications for architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) practices. Furthermore, it serves as an impetus for governments to improve their programs and policies and fulfill social responsibilities.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction; new infrastructure; social responsibility; sustainable development |
| Index terms: | systematic literature review, social responsibility, journal, program, practitioner, inventory, infrastructure construction, sustainable development, content analysis, publication, meta-analysis, interaction, ethics, methodology |
| Subjects: | health safety and environment, civil engineering, behavioral psychology, research dissemination and communication, research evaluation and metrics, research methods, data analysis and analytics, practitioner, ethical practice, software systems, inventory management |
| Topics: | Digital Applications, Supply Chain Management, Information Management, Research Practice, Health and Safety, Roles and Professions, Engineering Principles |
| 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