Abstract
Achieving and sustaining the cooperation of individuals with their temporary multi-organization (TMO) workgroups is, arguably, one of the most enduring challenges facing the construction sector. A mediational model connecting pride and self-respect to each of four dimensions of cooperative behaviour—in-role, compliance, extra-role, and deference—is tested in a survey sample of 140 construction professionals in Hong Kong. Bootstrap tests of the indirect effect of pride on cooperative behaviour suggest that self-respect fully mediates the influence of pride on in-role behaviour and compliance behaviour, and partially mediates the influence of pride on extra-role behaviour. The results also suggest that pride has no effect on deference behaviour. While needing corroboration by future research, the findings suggest that viable strategies designed to foster pride and self-respect could engender and sustain cooperation in construction TMO workgroups, and support ongoing efforts to reform construction. The bootstrapping procedures for testing intervening variable models are elaborated in the hope that this will encourage more process analysis research in construction.
Acknowledgement
Grant HKU7138/05E from the Hong Kong Research Grants Council is gratefully acknowledged for partly funding the research reported here. An earlier version of this manuscript was presented at the first ESRC/ARCOM seminar in the series on ‘Cultural Issues for Project Organisations: Developing Theory and Practice’ held at Loughborough University, UK. We are grateful to colleagues Satu Teerikangas and Hedley Smyth for helpful comments on an earlier draft. Any errors or omissions are the authors’.