Which Kind of Science is Construction Management?

Lauri Koskela

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

24 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

It is argued that the mainstream views on the nature of construction management are insufficient, and as one consequence of this, the relevance of construction management has been questioned. As a solution to this situation, construction management is suggested to be repositioned as a design science, rather than as an explanatory science. A historical consideration reveals that design science equals to one of the sciences proposed by Aristotle, however, the suggestion of Aristotle has been forgotten. Thus, there has been a long-standing neglect of the design science, which explains the present fragmentation of this field. It is argued that this redefinition of construction management will solve several problems plaguing this discipline, including the problem of relevance.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of IGLC16
Subtitle of host publication16th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction
EditorsPatricia Tzortzopoulos, Michail Kagioglou
PublisherThe International Group for Lean Construction
Pages51-60
Number of pages10
ISBN (Print)9781905732456
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2008
Externally publishedYes
Event16th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction - Manchester, United Kingdom
Duration: 16 Jul 200818 Jul 2008
Conference number: 16
http://iglc.net/Papers/Conference/18 (Link to Conference Website )
https://www.worldcat.org/title/proceedings-of-iglc16-16th-annual-conference-of-the-international-group-for-lean-construction/oclc/334011830

Conference

Conference16th Annual Conference of the International Group for Lean Construction
Abbreviated titleIGLC16
Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
CityManchester
Period16/07/0818/07/08
Internet address

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