Development of a Perceptual Distance Monitor (PDM) for client-contractor collaborations
Christian Van Der Krift, Josette M. P. Gevers, Arjan van Weele · Academy of Management Proceedings · 2019
Client-contractor relationships are increasingly important in determining project outcomes. Although clients benefit from good relationships, clients and contractors often have different perceptions regarding relationship issues in their projects. In this study, we apply agency theory and social identity theory to understand why perceptions differ between collaborating partners. Furthermore, we investigate through a literature study on which relationship issues perceptual distance can be expected. For this, we use the input-process-output model. In two phases we gathered quantitative data from both clients and contractors. The first phase serves as a pilot phase in which the questionnaire is tested. The second phase is used to test for perceptual distance and its predictive validity of project outcomes and trust. We found that buyer and supplier representatives showed perceptual distance on multiple relationship issues. Moreover, we found that perceptual distance was mostly negatively but sometimes also positively related with project outcomes and trust, proving perceptual distance an important topic for project managers.