Integrating Human Well-Being Into Sustainable Construction: Modelling Stress-Resilience Relationships Among Construction Professionals

Abstract

The focus in construction industry has been on environmental and economic sustainability, with limited emphasis on the social dimension, particularly the integration of human well-being and psychological sustainability into construction sustainability. Investigating human well-being in sustainable construction calls for an evaluation of construction professionals' workplace stress and their subsequent psychological and emotional resilience in response to it. The study models the relationship between workplace stress and emotional resilience of construction professionals with the aim of integrating human well-being into sustainable construction. Workplace stress was conceptualized into seven variables, namely, time stress, anticipatory stress, situational stress, encounter stress, physical stress, mental stress, and weather-related stress, while resilience was measured as emotional resilience. Questionnaires were used in eliciting information from construction professionals working on construction sites. 150 questionnaires were distributed to the respondents using a purposive sampling technique, with 117 returned and valid for analysis. Multiple linear regression analysis was employed in modelling the relationship between workplace stress and emotional resilience. The results show that time stress positively influences emotional resilience, while mental stress negatively affects emotional resilience. The study, therefore, concludes that while construction professionals may adapt positively to time-related work pressure, psychological and emotional stressors can weaken their emotional coping capacity. Construction organizations should prioritize mental health support, stress management strategies, and employee well-being programs as part of integrating human well-being into sustainable construction, thereby strengthening emotional resilience and promoting a healthier and more productive workplace.