Identification and Quantification of the Impact of Work Components on Mental Workload Based on Construction Worker Perspective

The success of a construction project depends on the performance of construction workers, which is influenced by internal and external factors, conditions, resources, and activities. Previous studies have shown that the perceptions of construction workers about the conditions present on a construction site can influence their performance and the connection between task characteristics, resources, ability to perform tasks, and worker behavior and performance. However, further studies are needed to investigate the effects of various work components that impact worker performance and mental workload for different construction trades at the task level in the construction industry. The present study aims to identify and quantify the impact of work components on mental workload based on the construction workers’ perspectives. The research also aims to obtain worker opinions about work components that impact task-related characteristics, stated as constituents (e.g., complexity of the task, repetitiveness of the task, distraction, and task value). A semi-structured interview technique was used for data collection for the study. A total of 52 construction worker responses from five projects in the US Pacific Northwest were obtained regarding the effect of work components on task characteristics. The study revealed 51 work components (e.g., number of steps to complete a task, worker familiarity with the task, and number of different subcontractors, workers, or crews/trades on site at the same time) based on relevant literature related to safety, quality, psychology, human factors, and personal management. The impact of work components on mental workload was quantified based on the construction workers’ perspectives. The study findings contribute significantly to the construction field and, explicitly, increase an understanding of the relationship between task characteristics and work components. Contractors and subcontractors can use the outcomes of the study when performing tasks to assess worker performance using the work components with the goal of improving safety and quality in the construction industry.