Ikuabe, M; Oke, A E and Aigbavboa, C (2020) Impact of contractors' opportunism on construction project transaction costs: Construction professionals' perception. Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, 25(1), pp. 125-141. ISSN 1366-4387
Abstract
Purpose: There is a growing concern of the non-balance of the final output of construction works in comparison the financial resources invested with during the course of construction projects. One propelling factor to this is the opportunistic disposition often sought out by construction contractors. This study aims to investigate the relationship between construction contractors' opportunism and construction project transaction costs from the viewpoint of construction professionals. Design/methodology/approach: Questionnaire survey was deployed in eliciting responses from construction professionals. A total of 337 questionnaires were distributed and 264 were retrieved and deemed fit for analysis. Methods of data analysis used for the study are Mean Item Score, Kruskal–Wallis H-test, Student Newman Kauls Post Hoc Test, Factor Analysis, Spearman Rank Correlation and Regression Analysis. Findings: The study showed that the most-ranked factor influencing contractors' opportunism that affects transaction cost is “Unclear scope of work”. Revealed from the study is the differing view of construction professionals of the effect of contractors' opportunism on transaction costs. Equally revealed through Spearman correlation analysis is the potent effect that contractors' opportunism has on transaction costs. Likewise, the study established that there is a discovered difference among construction professionals' perceived effect of contractors' opportunism on construction transaction costs. Originality/value: The study establishes the nexus between construction contractors' opportunistic disposition and construction transaction costs, which are shown to be highly correlated. The study went further to recommend that efforts should be made to ensure that issues like contract documentation should be well and appropriately carried out; roles and responsibilities of stakeholders should be well defined so as to fully keep all parties to a contract abreast with the expectations of their duties in relation to the project objectives.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction; construction cost; contractors; opportunism; professionals; stakeholders; transaction costs |
| Index terms: | questionnaire, methodology, construction project, duty, contract documentation, construction contractor, opportunism, transaction cost, data analysis, survey, construction work, factor analysis, construction professional, regression analysis, correlation analysis, construction cost |
| Subjects: | research methods, production management, professional development, financial analysis, statistical analysis, data collection methods, contractual role, business, practitioner, operations management, contractual arrangements, data analysis and analytics, financial and cost management |
| Topics: | Contract Administration, Organizational Design, Roles and Professions, Procurement, Cost Management, Information Management, Research Practice, Project Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here