Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the mediating role of organisational commitment in the relationship between work‒life balance (WLB) and organisational performance of female construction professionals in the Nigerian construction industry.Design/methodology/approach: The study empirically examined WLB of female professionals in medium- and large-sized Nigerian construction organisations. The data collected were analysed using partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).Findings: The findings revealed that there is a positive relationship between WLB and organisational commitment, and that organisational commitment mediates the impact of WLB on organisational performance.Research limitations/implications: One of the limitations of this research is the cross-sectional nature of the study and the nature of data collected, which is related to female gender. Efforts should, therefore, be made to further this study by examining the impact of WLB on both male and female professionals in construction.Originality/value: This paper presents an empirical research on the significance of family-friendly initiatives within construction organisations in Nigerian context, and the results of the study have implications for industry practitioners and academics.

The relationship between total quality management (TQM) practices and organizational performance has been widely reported in literature without consensus on its nature. This study examined the nature of relationship as well as influence of TQM practices and strategies for continuous improvement on different measures of performance among large- and medium-sized construction companies in the Nigerian construction industry. Unlike earlier studies, the research gives specific thought to how the relationship between TQM practices and performance is mediated by strategies for continuous improvement. The study was conducted using sequential mixed methods. In-depth structured interviews were first conducted which formed the basis for cross-sectional survey that subsequently followed. One hundred and twenty-eight valid questionnaires from well-structured questionnaires that were self-administered to 155 medium- and large-sized construction companies were received. Based on the factor analysis and partial least square structural equation modelling that were carried out, the study revealed that TQM practices have significant effects on organizational performance. However, the mediating roles of strategies for continuous improvement are necessary to ensuring better organizational performance. Therefore, it is imperative for organizations that are craving for competitive advantage to place high premium on TQM practices while ensuring that the right strategies for continuous improvement are put in place.

Purpose: Construction process is complex and traditionally fragmented; thus, it is almost impossible to have a project completed without changes to the original plan or the construction process. The purpose of this study is to identify and examine the causes of variation orders, ascertain their effects and establish the cost and time performance implication as a result of variation orders. Design/methodology/approach: This study obtained information from 90 construction stakeholders on 30 completed educational building projects to ascertain the causes and effects of variation orders on project delivery using questionnaire survey. In addition to this, a pro forma document was designed to obtain the project characteristics, cost and time data from these 30 completed educational building projects. Factor analysis was used to categorise the causes of variation orders, while severity index was used to examine their effects on project delivery. The hypothesised statement was tested using paired t-statistics to examine whether a statistically significant difference existed between variation orders, cost and time performance of the projects. Findings: The study identified 13 main factors as causes of variation orders and the results revealed that the most frequent effects of variations were increase in construction costs, time, client dissatisfaction, increase construction project rework and demolition and project abandonment. The results also showed that variation orders had significant effects on both cost and scheduled performance of the educational building projects with average cost and time escalation of 33.95 and 29.45 per cent of the original project cost and time, respectively, for the entire projects studied, while average cost implication of variation orders is 23.79 per cent. Practical implications: The findings in this study will be of assistance to government agencies and management of public works in higher institutions of learning in managing variations in construction projects. The study will also add to the current literature on the impact of variation orders on educational building projects in developing countries. Finally, it will create the much-needed awareness on the severity and implication of change or variation orders on project delivery. Originality/value: The study identified and examined the causes of variation orders, ascertained their effects and established the cost and time effects of the causes of variation order on project performance. This will assist project initiators, contractors, consultants and other stakeholders to fully appreciate and understand the significant effects of variation orders on project performance.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the mediating effect of learning capacity in the relationship between the social media usage by the construction of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and their business performance in Nigeria. Design/methodology/approach: A quantitative survey technique was used to collect data from the owner/manager of construction SMEs in Nigeria. The partial least square structural equation modeling was used in the assessment of the measurement model and structural model to assess the validity and reliability of the measures and to evaluate the hypotheses proposed in the conceptual model. Findings: Empirical findings indicated a significant positive relationship between learning capacity and performance of SMEs. Similarly, the use of social media is significantly and positively associated to the business performance of SMEs. It has also been shown that learning capacity is a mediator of the relationship between social media and SME performance. Research limitations/implications: The data for the study is are all from a single industry and a related line of business, so it could be more interesting to include more companies across sectors or industries. The finding contributes to the ongoing debate on the effect of social media on business performance. It also defined the need for the owner/manager of SMEs to understand and appreciate the effect of social media through the organization's learning potential to gain a sustainable competitive advantage. Practical implications: There are a number of theoretical and practical implications for academics and practitioners who are interested in further studies of organizational social media. The research presents a quantitative study on the effect of social media adoption on the organizational performance of the construction industry. This study confirms the mediating role of learning capability in the relationship between the use of social media and performance of SMEs operating in the construction industry. Originality/value: This study empirically examined the relationship between social media adoption and the SMEs learning capability and business performance by evaluating a hypothesized conceptual framework to establish the relationships.

Construction industry tenders are usually awarded to the lowest bidder, with emphasis being placed on the past, on price, quality, and timeliness, with little to no attention paid to the commitment of contractors to sustainability. It is not all construction firms and other stakeholders have an understanding of what sustainable procurement is about in the Nigerian construction industry, resulting in the limited adoption by those that understood it due to the level of risk they claimed it involved. This research examines the barriers to implementing sustainable procurement in the Nigerian construction industry by adopting a survey approach using self-administered questionnaires to obtain data from a purposively sampled group of 116 procurement practitioners in Abuja, Nigeria. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis. Factor analysis was used in categorizing the barriers to sustainable procurement into four: attitude and poor fiscal incentive; financial restrictions; insufficient leadership and knowledge; and regulatory constraints. The result showed that there was no sustainable procurement regulatory framework in the country and that a lack of government commitment, poor economic conditions, and a lack of knowledge were the major barriers to the adoption of sustainable procurement in the Nigerian public construction sector. It is therefore suggested that to make the construction industry’s activities more sustainable, practitioners need to learn more about sustainability, and governments should make policies that encourage and support low tariffs and taxes on sustainable goods and provide government subsidies. The research adds to the ongoing discussion about sustainable procurement practices in developing economies. It does this by drawing on a variety of theoretical perspectives to give a deep understanding of the challenges of sustainability from the public sector’s point of view.

Purpose: This study examined the causes of academic stress amongst undergraduate students in the Department of Quantity Surveying to ascertain whether stress has an influence on their academic performance.Design/methodology/approach: This research explores the relationships between these constructs: academic stress, non-academic stress, coping strategies and academic performance, using a survey questionnaire to collect data from 190 undergraduate students in the Quantity Survey department. Descriptive statistics have been used to analyse the data and a path analytical approach has been adopted to evaluate the relationship between the constructs discussed in the paper.Findings: Significant linear associations have been established between all the proposed paths and the outcome factor (p < 0.00). Coping strategies were an important mediator (p = 0.000), as they explained 32.9% of the association between academic stress and non-academic stress. However, the findings have shown that the stress faced by students is an optimal degree of stress that improves learning capabilities.Practical implications: Explanation and clarification of the effects of academic and non-academic stress and coping mechanisms on the academic performance of university undergraduate students could help to reduce the risk of suicide amongst the teeming youths. It will also afford the university administration the opportunity to engender stress-free environment that is conducive for learning through the formulation of appropriate policies that promote “balanced learning” for the students. The outcome of this study may provide a launch pad for researchers who are interested in knowing how the possible causes of stress may impact on the health of university students.Originality/value: The findings will be of great importance to the academic advisers and university administration in developing a flexible academic calendar and adopt policies that will eliminate academic stress and promote strategies to cope with non-academic stress. The study is the first attempt to examine academic stress, non-academic stress, coping strategies and academic performance in a single research in the Nigerian context due to limited literature found. This study has pedagogical implications to education practice by offering tertiary institutions the opportunity to appraise and device a means of managing students' stress by identifying their needs and increase students' coping skills based on prevailing modalities that give students' opportunities to strengthen the strategies of coping.