Investigating the Impact of Project Definition Clarity on Project Performance: Structural Equation Modeling Study

Having a clear project definition is crucial for successful construction projects. It affects design quality, project communication between stakeholders, and final project performance in terms of cost, schedule, and quality. This paper examines the relationship between project definition and final p...

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Main Authors: Xia, B., Xiong, B., Skitmore, M., Wu, Peng, Hu, F.
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2016
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/40691
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author Xia, B.
Xiong, B.
Skitmore, M.
Wu, Peng
Hu, F.
author_facet Xia, B.
Xiong, B.
Skitmore, M.
Wu, Peng
Hu, F.
author_sort Xia, B.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Having a clear project definition is crucial for successful construction projects. It affects design quality, project communication between stakeholders, and final project performance in terms of cost, schedule, and quality. This paper examines the relationship between project definition and final project performance through a structural equation model comprising four latent constructs and six path hypotheses using data from a questionnaire survey of 120 general contractors in the Malaysian construction industry. The results show that in the study population all three items impact the project performance, but the link between design quality and project performance is indirect. Instead, the clarity of project definition affects project performance indirectly through design quality and project communication and design quality affects project performance indirectly through project communication. The primary contribution is to provide quantitative confirmation of the more general statements made in the literature from around the world and therefore adds to and consolidates existing knowledge. Practical implications derived from the finding are also proposed for various project stakeholders. Furthermore, as lack of the clarity of project definition is a very common occurrence in construction projects globally, these findings have important ramifications for all construction projects in expanding and clarifying existing knowledge on what is needed for the successful delivery of construction projects.
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institution Curtin University Malaysia
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-406912017-09-13T13:41:45Z Investigating the Impact of Project Definition Clarity on Project Performance: Structural Equation Modeling Study Xia, B. Xiong, B. Skitmore, M. Wu, Peng Hu, F. Having a clear project definition is crucial for successful construction projects. It affects design quality, project communication between stakeholders, and final project performance in terms of cost, schedule, and quality. This paper examines the relationship between project definition and final project performance through a structural equation model comprising four latent constructs and six path hypotheses using data from a questionnaire survey of 120 general contractors in the Malaysian construction industry. The results show that in the study population all three items impact the project performance, but the link between design quality and project performance is indirect. Instead, the clarity of project definition affects project performance indirectly through design quality and project communication and design quality affects project performance indirectly through project communication. The primary contribution is to provide quantitative confirmation of the more general statements made in the literature from around the world and therefore adds to and consolidates existing knowledge. Practical implications derived from the finding are also proposed for various project stakeholders. Furthermore, as lack of the clarity of project definition is a very common occurrence in construction projects globally, these findings have important ramifications for all construction projects in expanding and clarifying existing knowledge on what is needed for the successful delivery of construction projects. 2016 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/40691 10.1061/(ASCE)ME.1943-5479.0000386 restricted
spellingShingle Xia, B.
Xiong, B.
Skitmore, M.
Wu, Peng
Hu, F.
Investigating the Impact of Project Definition Clarity on Project Performance: Structural Equation Modeling Study
title Investigating the Impact of Project Definition Clarity on Project Performance: Structural Equation Modeling Study
title_full Investigating the Impact of Project Definition Clarity on Project Performance: Structural Equation Modeling Study
title_fullStr Investigating the Impact of Project Definition Clarity on Project Performance: Structural Equation Modeling Study
title_full_unstemmed Investigating the Impact of Project Definition Clarity on Project Performance: Structural Equation Modeling Study
title_short Investigating the Impact of Project Definition Clarity on Project Performance: Structural Equation Modeling Study
title_sort investigating the impact of project definition clarity on project performance: structural equation modeling study
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/40691