Research Support Program

Research Aim

The purpose of this study is to develop a music related stress management framework to improve mental health of PMPs in Australia project based organisations.

Research Background

Work-related stress is a growing problem around the world and the second most common compensated illness/injury. Work-related stress arises where work demands of various types and combinations exceed the person’s capacity and capability to cope. Project-based organisations are dynamic environment and usually expose project management (PM) practitioners to excessive work-related stress. Negative implications of work-related stress, such as poor health and high absenteeism of employees and low productivity of organisations, have propelled consideration of various solutions. Because of the positive effects of music listening on both physiological arousal (e.g. blood pressure) and psychological stress experiences (e.g. anxiety), this study is aimed at examining the effects of music and music listening on alleviating work-related stress of PM practitioners.

Research Objectives

• Objective 1- How effective are music of different types in alleviating the stress of project management professionals
• Objective 2- How effective are different ways of listening to music in alleviating the stress of project management professionals
• Objective 3 – How effective is music in alleviating the stress of project management professionals in groups of different demographics and personalities
• Objective 4 – How effective is music in alleviating the stress of project management professionals under influence of different work-related stressors
• Objective 5- Are there any significant differences in the effectiveness of music in alleviating the stress of project management professionals in Australia?

How can people participate in your research?

You will be asked to complete an online questionnaire comprising two parts, namely Part 1 and Part 2. Approximately 15 minutes are needed from you for each of the two parts.

1. In Part 1, you will be asked to answer questions related to your basic information and work-related stress.
2. You will then be given two weeks to listen to music. The music can be of any type and you may listen to it in any way you like, be it at workplace, on the road, or at home, as long as you reckon that the music you listen and the way you listen would help alleviate your work-related stress.
3. Then, in Part 2, you will be asked to answer questions related to your music listening and work-related stress during the past two weeks.

Before starting to complete the questionnaire, you will need to provide your consent to participate in this study.

This research and survey is conducted by Western Sydney University (WSU). The survey is hosted on an external website. For enquiries about this research, please contact WSU Assoc Prof Xiaohua (Sean) Jin at xiaohua.jin@westernsydney.edu.au.

About the Researchers

Dr. Xiao-Hua (Sean) Jin is an Associate Professor in Project Management at the School of Engineering, Design and Built Environment at Western Sydney University. Being a Fellow of the renowned UK Higher Education Academy, Sean teaches in both undergraduate (Constr Mgmt) and postgraduate (Proj Mgmt) programs and is the Director of Academic Programs in Project Management.

Sean conducts research in the field of construction management and economics, particularly in the area of Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and Project Management (PM). He has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles in renowned journals and conferences and obtained competitive research grants/awards from international funding bodies and industry. He is also currently supervising 10 doctoral students and is a leadership team member of the Center for Smart Modern Construction (c4SMC) at Western Sydney University.

Sean is an active member of the International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction (CIB), the Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM), and the International Centre of Complex Project Management (ICCPM).

Prior to joining WSU in Oct 2011, Sean worked at the School of Architecture and Building at Deakin University, the School of Architectural Civil and Mechanical Engineering at Victoria University, and the Faculty of Architecture Building and Planning at the University of Melbourne. Sean pursued his doctoral degree in the area of risk management in public-private partnership infrastructure projects at the University of Melbourne. His Master’s degree was also obtained by research, in the area of construction partnering, at the National University of Singapore. He obtained his Bachelor’s Degree of Engineering (Construction) at Shanghai Tongji University, China. Sean had also worked as a project manager in Shanghai China.

Ye (Joy) Fu is a lecturer at the Institute of Humanities, East China University of Technology. Joy holds a master’s degree in Philosophy from East China University of Technology, a Bachelor of Arts (piano Major) from Department of Music of Shanghai Normal University, a Diploma in English language in economics and trade. She teaches piano, music theory, and Chinese and foreign music appreciation and is a member of the Piano Professional Committee of Shanghai Musicians Association. Joy was also a co-investigator of a project titled “Symbolic Culture Research” funded by the Chinese National Social Science Foundation and a visiting scholar to Western Sydney University.

Professor Srinath Perera is the is the founding Director of Centre for Smart Modern Construction (c4SMC) at Western Sydney University. He holds the personal chair in Built Environment and Construction Management at Western Sydney University (WSU). He joined WSU in June 2016 after serving as Professor of Construction Economics at Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK for 7 years.

Srinath is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New South Wales (FRSN). He is also a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Building (AIB) and a Chartered Surveyor and a corporate member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (AIQS) and Australian Institute of Project Management (AIPM). He has over 30 years’ experience in academia and industry and has worked as a consultant Quantity Surveyors and Project Manager in the construction industry.

He holds a PhD from University of Salford, UK. Professor Perera is a pioneer in the field of construction informatics integrating AI technologies to construction and project management. He co-authored a research monograph, “Advances in Construction ICT and e-Business” (2017) and two internationally recognised textbooks “Cost Studies of Buildings” (2015) and “Contractual Procedures in the Construction Industry” (2017) published by Routledge. He has authored over 250 peer reviewed publications and his current research leads work in the areas of Blockchain and IoT applications in construction, BIM, Digital Twin, offsite construction, construction business models and construction performance leading to Industry 4.0.

Bashir Tijani is a casual academic at Western Sydney University, Australia. Bashir attained his BSc (Hons) in Quantity Surveying from Sheffield Hallam University, United Kingdom (UK) in 2012. He worked as a Quantity Surveyor in Total Construction, UK from 2012 to 2014. He also received MPhil in Engineering Management from Griffith University, Australia in 2017. He is currently in the completion stage of his PhD in Project Management at Western Sydney University through the research scholarship. Bashir has over three years industrial experience as a Quantity Surveyor both in the UK and Australia. I have been involved in costing, estimation and project management of construction projects. Bashir is currently a reviewer of several peer-reviewed journals including Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management; International Journal of Construction Management and Journal of Engineering, Design and Technology.