Mohandes, S. R.; Zou, J.; Luo, Y.; Ejohwomu, O.; Kidd, C. and Arashpour, M. (2026) Examining the barriers to the adoption of the metaverse in construction projects: Lessons learned from the UK. Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology, 24(1), pp. 242-259. ISSN 1726-0531
Abstract
Purpose – Adopting the metaverse in construction has significant potential for digitalizing this sector, integrating physical and digital reality. However, several complex and interconnected barriers hinder its adoption. This paper aims to examine these interrelationships to promote the metaverse adoption in construction. Design/methodology/approach – A Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA)-guided literature review was conducted to identify existing barriers to metaverse adoption, followed by the employment of the fuzzy Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory method to analyze the interrelationships among the identified barriers. Findings – The analysis revealed a hierarchical structure of barriers, comprising five primary and 17 secondary barriers. Among them, the strongest causal main barriers were political barriers (MB1), particularly the "Lack of standardization policies", and cultural barriers (MB5), with "Internal cultural conflict" emerging as the most critical sub-barriers. Practical implications – The findings provide several practical guidelines for industry practitioners by pinpointing the most causal barriers hindering the adoption of metaverse technologies in construction. Originality/value – Unlike previous studies that treated adoption barriers in isolation, this study systematically explores their interdependencies for the first time, providing advanced understandings and supporting strategic decision-making for the integration of the metaverse in construction.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction sector; fuzzy sets; metaverse; multi-criteria decision-making; prisma; systematic literature review |
| Index terms: | literature review, multi-criteria decision-making, practitioner, construction project, lessons learned, systematic literature review, fuzzy set, meta-analysis, decision-making, construction sector, methodology, integration, laboratory, standardization, employment |
| Subjects: | decision-making and optimization, decision analysis, research methods, performance measurement, data analysis and analytics, practitioner, professional development, organizational analysis, industry analysis, production management, research evaluation and metrics, management, research management |
| Topics: | Project Management, Research Practice, Organizational Design, Roles and Professions, Quality Management, Human Resources, Information Management, Risk Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
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