An exploratory study of understanding project risk management from the perspective of national culture.pdf.pdf

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International Journal of Project Management 33 (2015) 564–575
ate/ijproman
An exploratory study of understanding project risk management
from the perspective of national culture
⁎
Junying Liu a, Fanye Meng b, , Richard Fellows c
a Department of Construction Management, Tianjin University, Tianjin, China
b Department of Financial Management and Supervision, State o Monopoly Administration, Beijing, China
c School of Civil and Building Engineering, Loughborough University, LE11 3TU, United Kingdom
Received 19 December 2013; received in revised form 13 July 2014; accepted 11 August 2014
Available online 6 September 2014
Abstract
Cultural influence is unavoidable in construction projects and a clear understanding of it is vital for essful risk management. This study
aims to explore how culture influences contractors' risk management. A case study method is selected including four projects in China, Poland and
Singapore. Data are collected through interviews and archival documents. Major risks are identified and risk management in each case is discussed
in the context of Hofstede's theory. A conceptual framework is proposed to reveal the link between culture and risk management. The findings
show that project risks are perceived and managed differently in different national cultures. It is indicated that IDV and UAI are the foci of attention,
beyond the contributions of PDI, LTO and MAS, and that contractors' knowledge of the host country's national culture influences their risk
management behaviors. Having such information is of great importance to improve international contractors' risk management practice.
© 2014 Elsevier Ltd. APM and IPMA. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Risk; National culture; Construction projects
1. Introduction cultural differences. Culture impacts economic performance
(Casson, 1993), and has e a mainstream topic of interest
Implementing projects in a foreign country is a high ri