Mental Health in Construction 4.0: Enhancing Workplace Social Support Through Prefabrication

The construction industry faces persistent challenges in providing adequate workplace social support–a critical factor in protecting workers' mental health. While the sector evolves toward Construction 4.0, with prefabrication emerging as a transformative method, limited research examines how these modern approaches impact workplace social support structures. This study aims to investigate how prefabrication work practices facilitate the development and enhancement of social support in construction. Using an ethnographic approach, research was conducted at a modular construction off-site factory in Melbourne, Australia. The study involved shadowing 12 office-based prefabrication professionals and factory-based supervisors over 21 days, non-participant observation of factory workers at the production line for 15 days, and interviews with five managers and nine supervisors and factory workers. The findings reveal that prefabrication work practices can enhance workplace social support through management, supervisory, and collegial mechanisms. The centralised facility and structured work processes in prefabrication enable stronger management support by facilitating flexible work arrangements, career development opportunities, and direct access to management. Additionally, the process-focused supervision within the centralised workplace fosters consistent and immediate supervisory support through regular interactions, efficient mentoring, and streamlined team management. Interdependent production processes and daily interactions further promote collaborative work relationships, reinforcing positive collegial support networks. These insights deepen our understanding of how the construction industry can enhance social support systems and highlight prefabrication’s potential to improve workers' mental health and well-being as the industry transitions into the Construction 4.0 era and beyond.