Understanding environmentally responsible behavior in cross-sea bridges: a grounded theory approach

Purpose This study aims to explore the practical dimensions and structural characteristics of environmentally responsible behavior (ERB) and examine its relationships with engineering attributes in cross-sea bridges. Design/methodology/approach Grounded theory was employed to analyze 169 scientific publications related to ERB, focusing on 57 cross-sea bridges built by Chinese construction contractors. Findings Results showed that ERB in cross-sea bridges includes six dimensions: planning behavior, influencing behavior, innovative behavior, normative behavior, supportive behavior, and remediation behavior. Among them, planning behavior has the highest proportion, largely determining the project's environmental impacts, whereas remediation behavior has the lowest due to its limited scope. Results also revealed relationships between engineering attributes of cross-sea bridges—including geographical location, commencement date, investment type, and total investment amount—and ERB dimensions, with planning behavior consistently dominating. Geographically, overseas projects elevated influencing behavior and innovative behavior while reducing remediation behavior. Temporally, remediation behavior peaked during 1990–1999, influencing behavior peaked during 2000–2009, and innovative behavior peaked during 2010–2024. Projects with corporate investment fostered innovative behavior while suppressing remediation behavior, and competitive substitution between innovative behavior and influencing behavior emerged in total investment contexts. Originality/value As research on ERB in cross-sea bridges remains limited, this study addresses the knowledge gap and contributes to environmental responsibility theory. Moreover, the findings can improve construction contractors' ERB, shape project owners' criteria for construction contractor selection, and support policymakers' targeted environmental governance measures. Graphical abstract Source: Authors’ own work A graphical diagram with methods is on the left and findings on the right, linking ERB to 6 behavior categories and attributes. The diagram is enclosed in a large dashed horizontal rectangle titled at the top “Understanding Environmentally Responsible Behavior (ERB) in Cross-Sea Bridges: A Grounded Theory Approach.” Inside this rectangle is another dashed rectangle divided into two vertical sections. The left section is labeled “Methods” and contains three stacked text boxes connected by downward arrows. The first box is labeled “Case selection: 57 cross-sea bridges built by Chinese construction contractors.” The second is labeled “Data collection: 169 ERB-related scientific publications focused on 57 cross-sea bridges.” The third is labeled “Grounded theory: three levels of coding process (open coding, axial coding, selective coding), testing saturation.” The right section is labeled “Findings” with two columns. The first column contains four ovals and a rectangle representing attributes. From top to bottom, they are labeled “Investment type,” “Commencement date,” “Geographical location,” “Total investment amount,” and “Engineering attributes of cross-sea bridges.” Arrows from these ovals connect to the second section. In the second column of the “Findings” section, a central circle labeled “ERB” connects to six surrounding ovals. At the bottom is “1 Planning behavior,” on the left is “2 Influencing behavior,” at the top left is “3 Innovative behavior,” at the top right is “4 Normative behavior,” on the right is “5 Supportive behavior,” and at the bottom right is “6 Remediation behavior.” A downward arrow from “1 Planning behavior” points to a rectangle at the bottom left labeled “The highest proportion largely determining the project’s environmental impact.” Another downward arrow from “6 Remediation behavior” points to a rectangle at the bottom right labeled “The lowest proportion due to their limited nature.” An arrow labeled “Corporate-funded (plus)” from “Investment type” points to “3 Innovative behavior.” An arrow labeled “2010 to 2024 (plus)” from “Commencement date” points to “3 Innovative behavior.” Two arrows from “Geographical location” are labeled “Located abroad (plus)” and point respectively to “2 Influencing behavior” and “3 Innovative behavior.” An arrow labeled “Greater than 1.4 billion USD (plus)” from “Total investment amount” points to the oval labeled “2 Influencing behavior.”