Civil Engineering ETDs

Publication Date

Summer 7-15-2024

Abstract

There are 574 federally recognized tribes in the United States, and these tribal communities differ by culture, language, history, and self-governance. Performing a tribal construction project is different than a non-tribal project due to tribal sovereignty, tribes are both legally and regulatory independent. The United States has recognized its trust with Indigenous tribes through treaties, statutes, and historical relations, however treaties and statutes have been broken over time. This paper aims to qualitatively and quantitatively identify relationships and trust built between contractors, designers, and owners on construction projects while identifying challenges. The methodology involves survey distribution to rank the level of importance of trust elements identified for projects on tribal land. The results of this study showed that implementing cultural awareness aspects is a vital trust element to incorporate when building a relationship. Furthering this research can lead to developing best practices in managing construction projects on tribal land.

Keywords

Tribal, Construction, Trust, Relationship, Cultural Awareness, Principal Component Analysis, T-test

Document Type

Thesis

Language

English

Degree Name

Civil Engineering

Level of Degree

Masters

Department Name

Civil Engineering

First Committee Member (Chair)

Dr. Susan Bogus Halter

Second Committee Member

Dr. Lisa Losada-Rojas

Third Committee Member

Dr. Maryam Hojati

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