How do relational arrangements between the owner and contractor impact construction project resilience? A relational view

Construction projects are facing more disruptive events, necessitating enhanced resilience. Drawing on the relational view, this study investigates the effects and mechanisms of four owner-contractor relational arrangements on proactive and reactive project resilience, including resource complementarity, relation-specific assets, knowledge-sharing routines, and governance mechanisms. Data were collected from the Chinese construction industry. The findings reveal that resource complementarity enhances both proactive and reactive resilience, with relation-specific assets mediating its effect on proactive resilience, and relation-specific assets and knowledge-sharing routines jointly mediating its effect on reactive resilience. Further analyses support the moderating role of contractual governance on these links, while relational governance exerts no significant moderating role. Theoretically, this study advances project resilience research by exploring critical interorganizational enablers and contributes to the relational view by extending its applicable context to temporary and disruption-prone construction projects. Practically, the findings offer managerial insights for designing relational arrangements to enhance construction project resilience.