Previous research linked late, underpaid, and non-paid contractors to various performance issues. However, the degree to which these differences in practices enable the problem under design-bid-build contracting is unknown. To address this gap, expert interviews were used to rate 11 incompatible practices. One-mode matrices were computed by utilizing social network analysis methods. Using metrics like structural equivalence and Euclidean distance, the study established that different indexes have different connections to the payment problem. The most significant index suggests the issue is a low-cost acquisition strategy. The strategy's misaligned interests were also corroborated by the hierarchical clustering and block modelling results. The study contributes to the methodology of assessing the efficacy of existing payment default remedies, rationalization of intermediary roles, and illustrates deviations from the general contracting principles.
Literature suggests that interdependencies may expose construction contractors to payment risks. However, prior research has tended to assume a disconnected perspective, which ignores the interdependence effect. To bridge this gap, a network of incompatible practices was built using judgments from subject matter experts in payment dispute cases in Kenya. After that, social network analysis (SNA) techniques such as Eigenvector and Lambda partitioning were used to analyze it. Ten interdependencies that expose contractors to payment risk were identified. The interdependence between the payment upon verified performance and the failure to match the work done with the amounts paid initiates and transmits most of these risks. In line with the power-law principle, fewer than 20% initiate and transmit more than 80% of the risks. This study demonstrates how economizing strategies can influence the choice of practices, complement blockchain decentralization measures, and improve the analysis of payment dispute cases.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.