Impacts of Levels of Trust on Dispute Occurrences in Highway Projects

Sogand Hasanzadeh, Ghada M. Gad, Samaneh Nasrollahi, Behzad Esmaeili, Douglas D. Gransberg

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

6 Scopus citations

Abstract

Disputes are common in the construction industry and lead to unnecessary cost and schedule overruns in projects. It is commonly believed that as the level of trust increases among project stakeholders, the frequency and severity of disputes decrease in a project; however, no previous study has empirically tested this hypothesis, especially in highway public projects. Therefore, this study empirically investigated the impact of various categories and levels of trust on the frequency and severity of disputes in public highway projects. Comprehensive literature review was conducted to identify factors that impact disputes in a construction project; this review yielded a survey instrument that captures both independent factors - including three categories of trust (competency, organizational, and relational) - and dependent factors - including the frequency and severity of disputes as well as other project performance metrics related to disputes. Then, the survey was distributed to procurement personnel in state Departments of Transportation (DOT). The data obtained was analyzed to find any statistically significant difference between dispute frequency and severity, relevant performance metrics, and the various categories and levels of trust. The results consistently revealed that high trust across categories resulted in high-performance projects for the aspects studied and organizational trust had the highest significant positive impact on the project performance metrics studied. An interesting observation was that, in most cases, neutral trust - not low trust - corresponded to the lowest levels of project performance for the aspects studied and across all categories of trust. The findings of this study can help DOTs appreciate and facilitate trusting environments for their projects to decrease the frequency and severity of disputes in the construction process.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationConstruction Research Congress 2016
Subtitle of host publicationOld and New Construction Technologies Converge in Historic San Juan - Proceedings of the 2016 Construction Research Congress, CRC 2016
EditorsJose L. Perdomo-Rivera, Carla Lopez del Puerto, Antonio Gonzalez-Quevedo, Francisco Maldonado-Fortunet, Omar I. Molina-Bas
PublisherAmerican Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
Pages497-507
Number of pages11
ISBN (Electronic)9780784479827
DOIs
StatePublished - 2016
Externally publishedYes
EventConstruction Research Congress 2016: Old and New Construction Technologies Converge in Historic San Juan, CRC 2016 - San Juan, Puerto Rico
Duration: May 31 2016Jun 2 2016

Publication series

NameConstruction Research Congress 2016: Old and New Construction Technologies Converge in Historic San Juan - Proceedings of the 2016 Construction Research Congress, CRC 2016

Other

OtherConstruction Research Congress 2016: Old and New Construction Technologies Converge in Historic San Juan, CRC 2016
Country/TerritoryPuerto Rico
CitySan Juan
Period5/31/166/2/16

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Civil and Structural Engineering
  • Building and Construction

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