Bridging theory and tender practice in ESG contractor selection: a social network analysis of public sector construction procurement

Public procurement is increasingly used to pursue environmental, social and governance (ESG) objectives in construction, yet the ESG criteria emphasised in procurement practice do not always align with those advanced in the academic literature. This study examines that gap through a comparative social network analysis (SNA) of two datasets: 46 New Zealand public sector construction tender documents and 39 peer reviewed studies. Co-occurrence networks were constructed for practice and theory, and degree centrality (DC) was used to identify structurally prominent ESG criteria. The findings show clear divergence between the two domains. Procurement practice gave greater prominence to workforce development, training, inclusion, and workforce well-being, whereas the literature placed stronger emphasis on occupational health and safety, energy efficiency, material reuse and recycling, waste management, and greenhouse gas reduction. These differences indicate a tenderability gap, in which criteria become central in procurement not only because they are conceptually important, but also because they can be specified, evidenced at tender stage, and monitored contractually. Tenderability therefore explains why ESG priorities are selectively amplified or muted as they move from theory into tender evaluation. The study consolidates the results into a validated, practice-oriented ESG criteria framework organised around tender evaluation logic, providing a more grounded basis for embedding ESG and circular economy objectives into public sector construction procurement.