Analyzing Characteristics of Conflicts and Their Impact on Project Added Value in Construction Projects in China

Research Project Topic
Analysing the characteristics of conflicts and their impact on project added value in the
context of construction projects in China.
Abstract
Conflict is identified as a very critical outcome of poor performance and inadequacy in
relation to construction projects. The environment of construction projects is appropriate to study
and explore the disputes and conflict management. The purpose of this research study is to explore
the characteristics of conflicts and their impact on project added value in the context of construction
projects in China. The qualitative, multiple case-study research will collect primary data through the
interview method from two different construction firms in China and integrate the opinions of six
participants from each company, belonging to low, medium and high management levels. The
perceptions of the employees regarding the characteristics of conflicts in the Chinese construction
industry and the impact of three variations of conflicts, conflicts related to conduct issues,
contractual issues and technical issues on project added value will be assessed through the collected
qualitative data. The collected data will be analysed by using Constant Comparative Analysis
(CCA) and relevant results will be extracted.
1. The rationale of the study
A common construction project includes different task members, for example, the
proprietor, the contractual worker, the sub-temporary worker, the expert and the manager. These
project members function in a dynamic framework with an arrangement of interrelated connections
which demands skills and energy to organize schedule, assets and data (Harmon, 2003). Amid the
execution of projects, project members are associated with resource trade, exchange of knoweledge
and data correspondence. The shared objective of project members is to convey an effective task as
per the plans within the time and financial costs, initially foreseen. However, it is important to note
that variations of these associations unavoidably prompt different conflicts (De Dreu & Weingart,
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2003). If the conflicts are not resolved at the right time, they could affect the task advance, in
addition to the relationship between the various project members. In view of these contentions, the
construction ventures are tormented by an undeniably antagonistic connection between the
members, especially between the proprietor and the temporary worker (Chen et al., 2014). Such
conflict laden association makes it hard to accomplish project targets, resulting in increased time
and cost (Hwang et al., 2013; Jelodar et al., 2015). Consequently, more consideration should be
paid to reveal the basic elements of project conflicts and its related instrument.
The status of construction contracts is generally incomplete (Demirel et al., 2016). This can
be attributed to the features of construction projects, for example, complications and dynamicity,
and vulnerability all through the project life cycle, the novel attributes of construction by-products,
the conceivable human faults and the trouble in foreseeing the task execution. With progressively
complicated and dynamic construction strategies and momentous industry divisions, endeavours
have been channelled to accomplish project added value. Project added value, which begins from
the value chain, has concrete and delicate estimations, including project value, client value and
member value (Cheng & Huang, 2008). In the meantime, irregularity in goals and advantages has
brought about regular contentions among project members (Mele, 2011). Lately, inter-
organizational conflicts have turned out to be progressively confounded and exhibit variations in
construction projects because of the developing project scale and multifaceted nature. The effects of
inter-organizational conflicts on construction projects’ added value could be dangerous or valuable,
contingent upon various factors, for example, conflict management methodologies, the mentalities
of project members and the features of the contentions (Wu, 2013). Accordingly, it is fundamental
to examine the impacts of inter-organizational conflicts on construction projects’ added value. This
diminishes broad losses of significant worth and to help maintain a strategic distance from
contentions.
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The aim of this examination is to research the impacts of inter-organizational conflicts on
Chinese construction projects’ added value. A few examinations have been conducted to explore the
conflict among project members and its effects on added value (Wu et al., 2017). However, not
many of these investigations used a multi-level approach pertinent to the management levels, low,
medium and high to examine inter-organizational conflicts on the value of projects. To fulfil this
gap, this examination aims to add to the existing literature on project and conflict management by
proposing a logical framework.
2. Significance of the study
The outcomes of the research aim to significantly contribute to conflict management and
project management literature and specifically three primary stakeholders, the top management
support, project managers (negotiators) and the contract managers. The aims of conducting a study
on inter-organizational conflict management are to essentially tackle either clear or subdued
conflicts and to mitigate the onset, dispersion and altercation of conflicts. The consequences of the
examination will allow reasonable channels and methods for adopting diverse procedures,
organizing the thoughts of all members in project execution, identifying project issues in a timely
manner and gathering satisfactory data to make high-quality decisions. Additionally, the result of
the investigation will empower the stakeholders to discover and tackle the current yet hidden
conflict in a timely and effective manner, thus mitigating the conceivable conflict drivers and
guaranteeing the accomplishment of project added value. Along these lines, the investigation will
focus on the way project members should endeavour more efforts in managing conduct issues,
contractual issues and technical issues, specific to construction project management. In China,
absence of equality is not unordinary within project members, where conflicts are imperative. Thus,
the study will focus on the specific cases in relation to low, middle and top management to provide
necessary strategies across each level to enhance communication and effectuate mutual trust and
reduce conflicts and enhance project value add.
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3. Preliminary literature review
Conflict and Conflict Types
Wang et al. (2012) recommended that conflict was a condition, for example, discordant
episode of antagonistic activity, or a condition of confrontation in comprehension or feeling. The
conventional perspective of conflict accentuates objective restriction in contentious circumstances
and expects that conflict starts from inverse advantageous association including assets allocation
and irregularity in objectives, and the discernment that accomplishment of somebody's goal might
be detrimental to the other (Jehn, 1995). Among groups with shared objectives, in any case, conflict
may in any case emerge despite the absence of genuine logical contradiction (De Dreu, 2007).
Consequently, as indicated by the consistency in aims and objectives, conflicts can be segregated
into two categories, shared conflict with shared objectives and competitive clash with genuine
logical contradiction (Hemple et al., 2009). Most contentions in the construction projects are akin to
shared conflict that has a genuine impact on the project added value. The internal conflict is
normally identified with members' conduct and is nearly connected with project added value. With
shared objectives, project members are inclined to be associated with each other, which may prompt
conflicts.
From a construction projects’ perspective, conflict can be characterized as common
associations between project members because of alternate points of view on project targets (for
instance, quality, time, finances, security) (Wu, 2013), which is a type of inter-organizational
conflict. Inter-organizational conflict, in which the free interests and objectives produce the synergy
among project members, more often is evident among project members and represents distinctive
attributes at various phases of the project life cycle (Yiu & Cheung, 2006). The commanding
conflict detonates in the construction phase, and the fundamental members included are the
proprietor and contractual worker, representing 74.82 percent of aggregate contentions (Ding,
2012). Inter-organizational conflict in construction projects is a comprehensive procedure because
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