How Contractor Behavior Affects Engineering Project Value-Added Performance

Contractors are one of the most important project participants, and their behavior has gained increasing attention for improving performance, but few studies have been devoted to focusing on the forms of contractor behavior and project value-added performance. This study developed and tested a theoretical model to investigate how different types of contractor behavior (perfunctory, consummate, and opportunistic) affect engineering project value added (EPVA) and analyze the moderating role of contract complexity and task complexity. The multiple regression analysis approach is used to analyze data collected from a survey of 290 Chinese project professionals. The results show that three types of contractor behavior have a significant impact on EPVA, that is, contractor perfunctory and consummate behaviors have a significant positive impact, whereas opportunistic behavior has a significant negative impact. In addition, contractor consummate behavior had the strongest impact, followed by perfunctory and opportunistic behaviors. The moderation results showed that the positive impact between perfunctory behavior and EPVA is strengthened and weakened by contract and task complexity, respectively, whereas the negative impact of opportunistic behavior is weakened and strengthened, respectively. The contract and task complexity have no significant moderating impact on the relationship between contractor consummate behavior and EPVA. The findings of this study contribute to the project governance and project performance literature and provide new knowledge for academe and practice for a deeper understanding of how to realize EPVA from the perspective of contractor behavior.