Ceric, A (2013) Application of the principal-agent theory to construction management: Literature review. In: Smith, S D and Ahiaga-Dagbui, D D (eds.) Proceedings of 29th Annual ARCOM Conference, 2-4 September 2013, Reading, UK.
Abstract
There is a growing literature concerning the application of the principal-agent theory to construction management. As this literature review demonstrates, it has received particular attention in the first decade of the third millennium. The theory focuses on information asymmetry, in which one of the two parties is better informed than the other, and in which they do not share the same interests. Opportunistic behaviour can be expected in such relationships. The concept of asymmetric information is of great value to modern economic theory, and it is thus likely to play a major role in the study of construction management. This review focuses on keywords, which are essential in literature search that precedes all research activities. The results of this literature review pinpoint the key issues associated with the principal-agent theory in the leading journals in construction management to date. As is shown in the paper, contracts and risk management are uppermost in the literature surveyed. Together, these two subjects fit very well in the principal-agent framework. This review will provide the basis for future research in construction management and related fields.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | principal-agent theory; information asymmetry; project management; risk; communication |
| Index terms: | economic theory, journal, literature review, information asymmetry, project management, agent, opportunistic behaviour, risk management |
| Subjects: | data analysis and analytics, economic analysis, research dissemination and communication, risk assessment, business, transaction economics, practitioner, project management theory and practice |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Project Management, Business Strategy, Risk Management, Roles and Professions, Organizational Design |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCA |
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