Barriers and Motivational Drivers for Sustainable Building in a Developing Country : The Case of Ghana

Sammanfattning: As the building and construction industry contributes considerably to global warming there isa need to increase sustainable building, especially in developing countries where the conceptis often overlooked. Even though there is a need to implement more sustainable alternatives,research shows that it comes with many challenges. The aim for this study is therefore toanalyze the barriers and motivational drivers when implementing sustainable building inGhana. Chan et al. (2018) have previously conducted a categorization of the barriers forsustainable building through a quantitative study. This categorization was used as a guidingtool in this qualitative study, which was done through a Minor Field Study (MFS). Hence,eleven interviews with green champions were held on-site in Ghana. Further, to understand themotivation of the interviewees better, self-determination theory (SDT) was used to analyze thedata. The theory divides motivation into two different levels, extrinsic and intrinsic. The formeris a more controlled form of motivation, while the latter is more autonomous. The findingsshow that the most critical barriers were lack of professional knowledge and expertise, lack ofawareness of sustainable building and its benefits, together with higher costs. Despite thesebarriers, the green champions are still highly motivated. While intrinsic motivation is dominantamongst the green champions interviewed for this study, there is still a level of extrinsicmotivation at play. When comparing the barriers to the motivational factors one suggestion isfor the private and public sector to invest in demonstration projects. This would fulfill the greenchampions’ motivation to create their own identity for African architecture combined with anincreased awareness for sustainable building. This paper contributes with a unique andcomprehensive look at sustainable building in Ghana. Additionally, the study's theoreticalframework is not often used in the field of construction management, making this a valuablecontribution as the paper can be beneficial to leaders or managers in the construction industry.