Sustainable Building Construction Practices and Occupants’ Level of Satisfaction

Abstract

The construction industry consumes enormous energy and emits greenhouse gases (GHG) due to the intensity of its activities. This study assesses the level of incorporation of sustainability in the design and construction of buildings and the extent to which sustainable construction practices influence occupants’ level of satisfaction. Through a cross-sectional research design, a survey of one hundred (100) construction professionals was conducted. A structured questionnaire was developed and used as an instrument for primary data collection. A total of eighty (80) questionnaires were successfully retrieved and the data were used for the study. The data were processed and analysed with the aid of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26.0 and R programming language. Frequency tables and relative implementation index (RII) were used for the descriptive statistic while the ggpairs plot and Spearman correlation analysis were utilised to analyse the study’s hypothesis. The results show that the ease of access in and out of building construction sites and downsizing on the use of incandescent bulbs and replacing them with energy-saving bulbs are the most often implemented sustainability practices in building design and construction phases respectively. There is a significant positive correlation between sustainable practices and the satisfaction of building occupants. The study concludes that the current sustainability practices on construction projects are economically driven. The study recommends the advocacy and enlightenment of construction stakeholders on the need to sustain efforts at incorporating sustainability features in the design and construction of buildings.