Abstract

There is a broad consensus among social and economic researchers that ‘institutions’ matter. Institutions
influence beliefs, norms and actions; thus they shape performance and outcomes. Interestingly, the concept
of institutions is not well established in construction economics or management research, specifically in
waste-related literature. This paper presents discussions on the impact of imperfect regulations, norms and
cultural/cognitive assumptions that exist within the construction procurement context, and how this has
translated into the institutionalisation of wasteful behaviours and practices in construction projects. Based
on a critical review of extant literature, the ultimate objectives of this study are to: (1) contribute to the
overall understanding of waste in construction by suggesting a novel perspective to the generation and
persistence of waste in construction projects; (2) demonstrate how the neo-institutional theory, a branch of
organizational sociology, can potentially be applied as an analytical lens to deliver a more explicit theory
of waste that relates cause and effect within the wider aspects of construction procurement systems and
relationships; (3) highlight a number of widely accepted regulations, norms and meanings that impede
efficiency and improvement efforts in construction; and (4) formulate propositions on institutional waste in