Matching conflict profiles with contractual and relational governance to enhance cooperation in construction projects: evidence from China

Purpose Conflicts frequently occur in construction projects. Matching appropriate contractual and relational governance with conflict features to promote cooperation and thus minimize the negative influences of conflict is an issue that deserves attention. Our study classifies conflict types into task, process and relationship conflict and defines their combinations as conflict profiles. By conceptualizing contractual governance as the complexity of contract provisions and the strictness of contract enforcement and relational governance as trust, our study aims to explore the configurational impacts of conflict profiles and these governance mechanisms on parties’ cooperative behaviors. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was conducted, and 238 valid questionnaires were received. Fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis was performed. Findings Four configurations produce cooperative behaviors. The combined use of detailed contracts, rigid enforcement and high trust enhances cooperation and such a governance arrangement is not subject to any conflict profile. A relatively low level of conflict requires detailed contracts and high levels of trust. For the conflict profile characterized by high task and process conflict and low relationship conflict, parties can select contractual governance-dominant or relational governance-dominant approaches. Originality/value Theoretically, our study reveals the matching relationships between conflict profiles and governance mechanisms, enriching the research on conflict profiles in construction projects and the interrelation between contractual and relational governance. Practically, the findings provide project managers guidance for conflict management and selecting governance mechanisms.