Nawaz, A and Guribie, F L (2024) Impacts of institutional isomorphism on the adoption of social procurement in the Chinese construction industry. Construction Innovation, 24(3), pp. 846-862. ISSN 1471-4175
Abstract
Purpose: Social procurement (SP) is a complicated and risky innovation, the adoption of which needs to be accompanied by complementary process and organizational change. To date, however, there has been little empirical evidence explaining whether and how different sorts of external pressures affect the level of SP adoption in the construction sector. Drawing on institutional theory, this study aims to analyze how three types of isomorphic pressures (i.e. coercive, mimetic and normative pressures) influence the adoption of SP in the construction sector. Design/methodology/approach: The impacts of these pressures are empirically tested with survey data collected from 134 construction firms in the Chinese construction industry. Findings: The findings show that both coercive and mimetic pressures have a considerable impact on the adoption of SP. However, there is little evidence in this study that normative demands had a major impact on SP. Practical implications: This research is a useful instrument for promoting a favorable social attitude regarding construction procurement. Through socioeconomic regeneration and development, procurement can be considered as a significant route for social transformation, economic development and poverty reduction. Originality/value: This study addresses the paucity of research into SP in the construction industry by establishing the institutional drivers to procuring services and products from a social enterprise perspective. Findings from this study extend the frontiers of existing knowledge on SP in the construction industry.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | China; construction industry; drivers; isomorphism; new institutional theory; social procurement |
| Index terms: | construction industry, construction procurement, poverty, transformation, social enterprise, institutional theory, construction sector, China, methodology, evidence, drawing, survey, construction firm, economic development, organizational change |
| Subjects: | research methods, economic development, Geography, sociology, industry analysis, organization, business, data collection methods, evaluation and assessment methods, technical documentation, contractual arrangements |
| Topics: | Organizational Design, Ethics, Design Practice, Procurement, Sustainability, Geographical Context, Research Practice, Business Strategy |
| 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