From both practical and theoretical perspectives, understanding the health and safety (H&S) implications of the characteristics and foundation upon which the construction industry in developing countries is built and operates is essential for H&S management within the industry. While many studies have provided evidence of factors affecting construction H&S in developing countries, none has fully considered the H&S implications of the industry’s characteristics. The current study thus examined how the peculiar characteristics of the construction industry in developing countries impact on the industry’s H&S management. Data were collected using questionnaire surveys from construction industry professionals in Ghana. Nine distinct characteristics were identified and ranked, as well as their relationships and statistical significance determined through correlation and analysis of variance (ANOVA), respectively. The findings showed that these characteristics of the construction industry in developing countries, particularly the lack of skilled and educated workforce, reliance on labour intensive methods and lack of single regulatory authority, present huge challenges to the management of H&S. Accordingly, this research recommended strategic interventions which are tailored towards the context of the industry’s characteristics. With the construction industry in developing countries exhibiting similar characteristics, the findings of this research can serve as a framework for country-specific study. The study contributes to the broader H&S performance improvement research in developing countries by throwing light on the characteristics of the industry that pose challenges to H&S performance.

The construction industry is missing out on numerous performance gains derived from gender diversity. Its reputation for excessive work stress, resulting in poor psychological health, is among the reasons for women not entering the industry or for them leaving the industry prematurely. Using an online questionnaire survey, this research investigated whether women professionals in the construction industry differ from their men colleagues in the stressors faced at work and the degree of work-related psychological injuries suffered. The respondents comprised 167 men and 110 women professionals working in the Australian construction industry. The results reveal that: (1) women professionals suffer more anxiety and acute stress symptoms than men professionals, but no significant difference is apparent between the genders in the level of depression suffered; (2) the top 10 stressors at work facing construction professionals are the same for both genders, with time pressure, excessive workload, long work hours, and unpleasant work environment being the critical issues; and (3) women professionals experience more discrimination, bullying, and sexual harassment. The research contributes to practice by identifying aspects that need improvements for making the construction industry gender diverse and sociopsychologically sustainable.

Human factors are of paramount importance to the success of projects. Although a lot of studies have been carried out on human factors in project management, not much research has been done on emotional intelligence (EI). Studies have shown that EI is beneficial to both the individual and the organization. The benefits of EI to project management were investigated in terms of the style of leadership. The study was conducted in Thailand by interviewing project managers and engineers (PMEs); and client representatives. The results showed that EI affected leadership behavior of the project leader. PMEs with higher EI tend to use open communication and proactive leadership styles. It is also found that EI generates delegating, open communication, and proactive behavior, which can bring positive outcomes to the organization.

Political skill, which consists of social astuteness, interpersonal influence, networking ability, and apparent sincerity dimensions, is considered as one of the most important skills in general management. However, its importance in construction management, particularly construction safety management, is still not as well known. The aim of this research is to understand the role of political skill in implementing safety management tasks and developing construction safety climate. Quantitative research methodology was adopted to test the theoretical model developed in this research. Data were collected via a web-based online survey and the analysis was done using structural equation modeling (SEM) method. The results of the analysis support the research hypotheses which proposed that project personnel’s political skill positively influences the implementation of safety management tasks and promotes the development of construction safety climate. Apparent sincerity and social astuteness are the political skill dimensions that initiate the whole relationships. They are the precursors of networking ability and interpersonal influence dimensions. Thereafter, interpersonal influence has positive impact on the implementation of safety management tasks. Finally, apparent sincerity and implementation of safety management tasks promote the development of construction safety climate. It is suggested that construction companies should incorporate the training of political skill into their human resource development programs and include safety management tasks into their safety management programs.