How the two-tier cross-domain control influence contractor’s design behavior: a configurational analysis

Purpose The contractor’s design behavior in engineering procurement construction (EPC) mode plays a decisive role in controlling design risks, ensuring construction quality and improving project value in terms of project performance. Organizational control is an important way to intervene and strengthen organizational behavior. Reasonably arranging organizational control of the design projects in EPC mode will greatly affect the contractor’s design behavior choices and achieve project goals. There are few existing studies that focus on the contractor’s classification design behavior management from the perspective of two-tier cross-domain control of the design projects in EPC mode. To fill the knowledge gap, this study explores how the two-tier cross-domain control linkage effect affects the contractor’s design behavior choice of the design projects in EPC mode through a configuration analysis. Design/methodology/approach This study selects five antecedent variables from the perspective of two-tier cross-domain control (including inter-organizational and intra-organizational controls) through literature review. This study collected 290 valid responses from the design projects in EPC mode practitioners through a questionnaire survey and analyzed the data using fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis. Findings The results of the necessity and sufficiency analysis indicate that (1) single control is not a necessary condition for contractor’s design behavior, but outcome control and social control play a more universal role in generating a contractor’s design behavior. (2) The four paths that affect the contractor’s design proactive behavior can be divided into two groups: one emphasizes the combined effect of three inter-organizational control, while the other highlights the considerable impact of synergistic inter- and intra-organizational control. (3) There are four paths that affect the contractor’s design compliance behavior. Compared with the organizational configuration of the contractor’s proactive design behavior, process control should be combined with bureaucratic control and clan control to play a role in the absence of outcome control and social control. Originality/value This study provides a more detailed explanation for how the linkage effect of the two-tier cross-domain control affects the contractor’s design behavior of the design projects in EPC mode. It broadens the application of positive organizational behavior and organizational control theory. In practice, this study provides a suitable control path for mutual benefit and a win-win situation between owners and contractors to promote the success of the design projects in EPC mode.