Reducing Hindrances to Adoption of Relational Behaviors in Public Construction Projects

Abstract

Contractual focus is thought to lie on a spectrum ranging from formal contract behaviors to relational behaviors. This study aims to investigate whether the use of relational behaviors leads to higher-quality relationships among contracting parties in public construction projects, identify the hindrances to adopting relational behaviors in these contracts, and recommend measures to overcome the hindrances. Using a structured questionnaire, data were collected from respondents who had public project experiences in Singapore and thereafter analyzed using partial least squares-structural equation modeling. The result shows that a lack of relational background leads contracting parties to adopt formal contract behaviors in public projects, and this further leads to deterioration in the quality of relationships among contracting parties. The results also indicate that (1) a lack of long-term commitment and a lack of public client initiative lead to misalignment among contracting parties and (2) a lack of long-term commitment is positively influenced by a lack of relational background and public client unwillingness to commit to relational behaviors. This study contributes to knowledge by identifying the hindrances to adopting relational behaviors and proving empirically that greater adoption of relational behaviors gives rise to better relationship quality among contracting parties in public projects. Recommendations are offered to enable contracting parties in public projects to adopt more relational practices.