Short‐Term Goal Setting for Construction

Abstract

Goal setting is one of the motivational techniques used in manufacturing and service industries to improve the productivity of the workforce, and previous studies have shown that goal setting can result in up to 20% increase in productivity. However, this technique has not been applied to construction projects due to the inherent characteristics of the construction industry and difficulties in implementing the technique at construction sites. To study the applicability of goal setting in construction, three experiments were performed over a period of 14 months. In all three experiments, the groups with a goal outperformed the groups without a goal. This increased performance is shown by higher expected profits at each experimental site. Comparison of all three experiments allows conclusions to be advanced that: (1) Goal setting induced increased productivity of unionized groups with a goal; and (2) short‐term goals resulted in higher productivity than long‐term goals.