Memon, S A (2017) Hong Kong relational contracting : an investigation into the attitudes and behaviours of contractors' project teams. PhD thesis, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Abstract
Relational contracting has proven to have a wide range of acceptability in Hong Kong’s construction industry and around the globe. However, the issues of self-centred behaviours from contractor teams, delays, cost overruns and disputes remain the talk of the hour. Contractor teams could adopt and cultivate relational behaviour to achieve better collaboration and improved project performance. This study had two main aims. The first was to explore attitudes and behaviours beneficial for collaboration in relational contracting projects in Hong Kong. For this, a qualitative approach was adopted, using in-depth interviews; these were based on relationship of attitude-behaviour from the Theory of Planned Behaviour (Ajzen, 1991). The interviewees were ten mid-senior-level professionals with active involvement in relational contracting in Hong Kong construction projects. They included project directors, project managers, consultant advisors for relational contracting and quality managers. The interview data were analysed using thematic analysis procedures to identify themes for attitudes and behaviour, as suggested by (Braun et al., 2014, Braun and Clarke, 2006). The second aim was to test framework derived from the thematic analysis of the interviews. For this, a questionnaire survey was administered to project team members working on RC projects in Hong Kong. The questionnaire was conducted, either online or via postal survey, between April 2016 to June 2016. In total, 100 valid responses from individual members of contractor teams were analysed. Of these valid responses, 81% were from project managerial staff of contractor teams, such as project directors, project managers, construction managers, site managers, and design managers, and 19% were from non-managerial staff such as engineers, coordinators, and quantity surveyors. The responses were analysed using quantitative analysis techniques (i-e reliability, factor analysis and structural equation modelling). The findings of the study suggest that to enable collaboration among project teams in relational contracting, contractor teams could adopt relational attitudes by ensuring the commitment of senior management to the project and relational norms, demonstrating intentions for collaboration by integrating teams, and encouraging relational behaviour with teamwork, affective trust and extra-role behaviour. The study provides 34 items and 8 dimensions of the framework and a structured approach for adopting relational attitudes and relational behaviour for contractor team in relational contracting to promote collaboration and improved performance in relational contracting projects in Hong Kong.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | reliability; trust; collaboration; disputes; relational contracting; Hong Kong; factor analysis; project performance; structural equation modelling; thematic analysis; questionnaire survey; cost overrun; project team; interview |
| Index terms: | engineer, qualitative approach, dispute, cost overrun, project manager, teamwork, relational contracting, Hong Kong, quantity surveying, project team, planned behaviour, construction industry, dimension, project performance, factor analysis, investigation, site manager, survey, commitment, structural equation modelling, manager, design manager, interview, norms, quantitative analysis, construction manager, thematic analysis, questionnaire, construction project, collaboration |
| Subjects: | contractual arrangements, psychology, practitioner, behavioral psychology, Geography, production management, research methods, health monitoring assessment and metrics, financial and cost management, project delivery, data analysis and analytics, dispute resolution, profession, data collection methods, statistical analysis, industry analysis, sociology, project management theory and practice, methods and analysis, management |
| Topics: | Legal Issues, Procurement, Project Management, Geographical Context, Health and Safety, Organizational Design, Roles and Professions, Research Practice, Cost 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