Understanding clients’ experience of trust and distrust in dwelling fit-out projects

Purpose Drawing upon the ambivalence literature, the purpose of this paper is to explore clients’ ambivalence caused by the co-existence of trust and distrust and to investigate how clients respond to the ambivalence. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative research strategies using multiple data sources were adopted. Face-to-face interviews were the major method for gathering data. Additional data sources included archival cases, official reports, regulations and rules and survey reports. Findings The results identified that clients’ ambivalence occurs in the face of the co-existence of trust and distrust. Clients might trust contractors on certain aspects and distrust of others or when they realize that trust and/or distrust have mixed merits and demerits. As a response strategy to the ambivalence, clients may choose to oscillate between trust and distrust in accordance with contractors’ quality and cost performance. Research limitations/implications One limitation is that dwelling fit-out projects are generally small in size. Parties in small size projects might have different mindsets than large projects. Thus, it is worthwhile to extend the framework to the context of large projects. Practical implications Managers or clients should be aware of the double-edged sword nature of trust and distrust. To deal with the ambivalence resulting from co-existence of trust and distrust, a proper balance of trust and distrust might be effective. Originality/value This study contributes an ambivalence approach to the trust research in project management.