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Given their interrelationship, international market selection (IMS) and entry mode selection (EMS) must be considered jointly if an optimal entry strategy is to be realized. However, researchers in the field of international construction have the tendency to consider IMS and EMS independently or sequentially. Therefore, this paper aims to explore a holistic framework that can accommodate IMS and EMS concurrently and test it using empirical data.

his study includes theoretical and empirical research. In theoretical part, an integrated decision model of IMS and EMS is proposed adopting literature review and theoretical derivation, then hypotheses are developed for the impact of decision-making factors. In the latter part, the IMS and EMS of 54 Chinese contractors in 67 countries were investigated, empirical data are collected according to hypotheses, an ordinal logistic regression model is established for statistics analysis. Finally, findings are drawn by comparing literature-based hypotheses with data-based analysis results.

Results show that empirical data fit theoretical model well. Findings are: IMS and EMS can be integrated into a holistic decision-making framework when be properly sequenced. When IMS and EMS are determined simultaneously, the decision can benefit from a sharing of common information. And the roles of at least 13 common factors are empirically demonstrated in this study.

The integrated decision sequence proposed in this study is applicable for a specific market, and cannot compare multiple alternative markets directly. The decision-making factors identified in this paper do not cover the enterprise strategic objectives and some other factors. Empirical data and some theoretical assumptions are based on the international market entry strategy of Chinese contractors. Therefore, the conclusions may not be completely applicable to global contractors though have certain reference value.

Based on the idea of holistic decision-making of IMS and EMS, this study proposes an international market entry strategy (IMES) sequence and an explicit model for determinants, then tests them with empirical data. This paper provides a new idea to manage IMS and EMS concurrently, which can improve the efficiency of IMES decision-making and avoid missing optimal alternatives. This study paves the way for a practical model and provides reference for contractors' international market entry strategy.

The sustainable development of contractor organizations depends highly on bidding decision-making of projects. This current study, leveraging the risk decision-making theory, attempts to elucidate the process of contractors’ bid/no-bid decision-making and reveal how the process is influenced by their perception of risk. In particular, this study aims to explore the multiple mediating effects of contractors’ trust in owners and risk perception in explaining the relationship between contractual governance outlined in owners’ bidding documents and the bid/no-bid decisions.

A questionnaire survey was used to obtain data from the Chinese construction industry. The PLS-SEM technique was employed to analyze a dataset of 557 available questionnaires.

The findings indicate that (1) the contractual governance provided by owners’ bidding documents positively impacts contractors’ bid/no-bid decisions; (2) both risk perception and trust serve as multiple mediators in this relationship and (3) trust mediates the relationship between contractual governance and contractors’ risk perception.

Drawing upon the risk decision-making theory, this study proposes a multiple mediation model for understanding contractors’ bid/no-bid decision-making processes. It contributes to a better understanding of contractors’ bidding decision-making mechanisms, thereby offering theoretical guidance for contractors to make reasonable and informed risk decisions.

This study investigates the influence of market and hierarchy organizational cultures on international project performance and examines the mediating role of relational capital.

In-depth interviews and a cross-sectional questionnaire survey were conducted to collect primary data within international projects. Hierarchical regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses based on data collected from 62 respondents.

The results reveal that both market and hierarchy cultures affect international project performance positively. Additionally, communication, cooperation and trust help enhance project performance; however, commitment is not. This study also proves the mediating role of relational capital between organizational culture and project performance.

This study selected only two types of organizational culture represented by Chinese construction enterprises. Future studies can explore the mediating role of relational capital between other varieties of organizational culture and project performance.

Given the high complexity and risks faced by projects abroad, both organizational culture, the internal environmental factor and relational capital being the external resource, are crucial for project success. This study clarifies the relationship between organizational culture, relational capital and project performance overseas. Empirical evidence to enhance international project performance for construction enterprises is provided. This study also makes contributions to international contractors who want to implement projects in developing countries.

This research aims to offers a new method for assessing geoeconomic risks in bilateral relations and evaluate the level of such risks from Vietnam’s economic dependency on China.

I apply descriptive analysis to identify asymmetrical dependency in Vietnam–China economic relations and propose a geoeconomic risk assessment framework to evaluate risk levels in bilateral economic linkages.

The proposed geoeconomic risk framework assesses risk levels, which are positively influenced by the degree of asymmetrical relations (vulnerabilities), the net impacts on the receiving economy (impacts) and the sending state’s ability to control economic tools (threats). In contrast, risk levels are negatively affected by the effectiveness of existing mitigation efforts. The framework employs ordinal likelihood scales to rank various risk levels. In the context of Vietnam–China relations, market access for agricultural products and control of the Mekong water emerge as the most risky areas for economic coercion, followed by Chinese official development finance in infrastructure and critical input imports. On the other hand, debt dependency and foreign direct investment in the energy sector are considered more secure areas—less likely targets for economic coercion. Hence, risk mitigation strategies should prioritize reducing asymmetry in vulnerable dependence areas while maintaining current practices in more secure areas.

Methodologically, it introduces a new approach for assessing bilateral geoeconomic risk. Empirically, it provides Vietnam’s policymakers with a comprehensive evaluation of the implications of economic interdependence with China.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the public safety risks of international construction projects (ICPs) from the perspective of threat and vulnerability. A novel and comprehensive risk assessment approach is developed from a systemic perspective and applied to the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to improve the public safety risk management strategy for ICPs in BRI.

First, a public safety risk indicator system was constructed from the two dimensions, namely threat and vulnerability. Next, an integrated measurement model was constructed by combining the Genetic Algorithm-Backpropagation (GA-BP) neural network, fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method and matter-element extension (MME) method. Data from 49 countries involved in the BRI, as well as five typical projects, were used to validate the model. Finally, targeted risk prevention measures were identified for use at the national, enterprise and project levels.

The findings indicate that while the vulnerability risks of typical projects in each region of the BRI were generally low, threat risks were high in West Asia and North Africa, Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries and South Asia.

First, the structure of the public safety risk system of ICPs was analyzed using vulnerability and system theories. The connotation of public safety risk was defined based on two dimensions, namely threat and vulnerability. The idea of measuring threat risk with public data and measuring vulnerability risk with project data was clarified, and the risk measurement was integrated into the measurement results to help researchers and managers understand and systematically consider the public safety risks of ICPs. Second, a public safety risk indicator system was constructed, including 18 threat risk indicators and 14 vulnerability risk indicators to address the gaps in the existing research. The MEE model was employed to overcome the problem of incompatible indicator systems and provide stable and credible integrated measurement results. Finally, the whole-process public safety risk management scheme designed in this study can help to both provide a reference point for the Chinese enterprises and oversea contractors in market selection as well as improve ICP public safety risk management.

The regulatory landscape surrounding international construction projects presents significant challenges, and contractors are still struggling to pay a painful price for their performance in the project. While existing research has identified various causes of contractor compliance, the intricate interplay of these factors and their impact on compliance remain largely elusive. The motivation-opportunity-ability (MOA) framework may hold the key to determining what factors can foster induced contractor compliance in international projects.

This study collected 124 valid data samples from practitioners involved in large-scale international contracting projects through expert interviews and questionnaire surveys. Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was employed to analyze the diverse combinations of contractor compliance factors.

The study identifies seven key factors that contribute to compliance behavior among international construction contractors: economic motivation, social motivation, normative motivation, legal completeness, deterrent sanctions, organizational learning and compliance management ability. The interplay of these factors promotes compliance in the following ways: When international construction contractors are influenced by both social and normative motivations, they exhibit a higher level of compliance. In situations where regulatory systems are relatively weak, the ability to manage compliance becomes the primary driver of compliance behavior for businesses. A comprehensive legal framework creates a conducive environment for contractors to improve their compliance through organizational learning.

The findings offer guidance for international construction contractors in enhancing compliance by considering factors such as motivations, legal frameworks, organizational learning and compliance management. This can lead to improved risk management and performance in international projects.

This research enhances fair and ethical practices in international construction by identifying compliance drivers, fostering positive social impact, mitigating negative consequences and empowering local communities. It informs legal and regulatory reform, encourages improved business practices and contributes to knowledge advancement in the field. Overall, the findings have the potential to positively impact the social fabric of international construction projects.

This study has made an important contribution to the field of compliance theory by integrating theories from multiple disciplinary domains and constructing a new theoretical framework from the perspectives of motivation, opportunity and capability. By elucidating how these factors interact and influence compliance behavior among international construction contractors, this research aids in understanding the complex dynamics of contractor compliance behavior and provides theoretical reference for compliance governance within the construction industry.

This study aims to investigate the relationship between individual-level psychological resources and team resilience in the context of expatriate project management teams. It seeks to understand how personal psychological resources contribute to team resilience and explore the dynamic evolution mechanism of team resilience. The goal is to enhance team resilience among expatriates in a BANI (Brittle, Anxious, Nonlinear, and Incomprehensible) world, where organizations face volatile and uncertain conditions.

An online survey was applied for data collection, and 315 valid samples from Chinese expatriates in international construction projects were utilized for data analysis. A structural equation model (SEM) examines the relationships between personal psychological resources and team resilience. The study identifies five psychological factors influencing team resilience: Employee Resilience, Cross-cultural Adjustment, Self-efficacy, Social Support, and Team Climate. The hypothesized relationships are validated through the SEM analysis. Additionally, a fuzzy cognitive map (FCM) is constructed to explore the dynamic mechanism of team resilience formation based on the results of the SEM.

The SEM analysis confirms that employee resilience, cross-cultural adjustment, and team climate positively impact team resilience. Social support and self-efficacy also have positive effects on team climate. Moreover, team climate is found to fully mediate the relationship between self-efficacy and team resilience, as well as between social support and team resilience. The FCM model provides further insights into the dynamic evolution of team resilience, highlighting the varying impact effects of antecedents during the team resilience development process and the effectiveness of different combinations of intervention strategies.

This study contributes to understanding team resilience by identifying the psychological factors influencing team resilience in expatriate project management teams. The findings emphasize the importance of social support and team climate in promoting team resilience. Interventions targeting team climate are found to facilitate the rapid development of team resilience. In contrast, interventions for social support are necessary for sustainable, long-term high levels of team resilience. Based on the dynamic simulation results, strategies for cultivating team resilience through external intervention and internal adjustment are proposed, focusing on social support and team climate. Implementing these strategies can enhance project management team resilience and improve the core competitiveness of contractors in the BANI era.

The construction of megaprojects often involves substantial risks. While insurance plays an important role as a traditional risk transfer means, owners and insurance companies may still suffer huge losses during the risk management process. Therefore, considering the strong motivation of insurance companies to participate in the on-site risk management of megaprojects, this study aims to propose a collaborative incentive mechanism involving insurance companies, to optimize the risk management effect and reduce the risk of accidents in megaprojects.

Based on principal-agent theory, the research develops the static and dynamic incentive models for risk management in megaprojects, involving both the owner and insurance company. The study examines the primary factors influencing incentive efficiency. The results are numerically simulated with a validation case. Finally, the impact of parameter changes on the stakeholders' benefits is analyzed.

The results indicate that the dynamic incentive model is available to the achievement of a flexible mechanism to ensure the benefits of contractors while protecting the benefits of the owner and insurance company. Adjusting the incentive coefficients for owners and insurance companies within a specified range promotes the growth of benefits for all parties involved. The management cost and economic benefit allocation coefficients have a positive effect on the adjustment range of the incentive coefficient, which helps implement a more flexible dynamic incentive mechanism to motivate contractors to carry out risk management to reduce risk losses.

This study makes up for the absence of important stakeholders in risk management. Different from traditional megaproject risk management, this model uses insurance companies as bridges to break the island effect of risk management among multiple megaprojects. This study contributes to the body of knowledge by designing appropriate dynamic incentive mechanisms in megaproject risk management through insurance company participation, and provides practical implications to both owner and insurance company on incentive contract making, thus achieving better risk governance of megaprojects.

This study is devoted to examining the peer effects of engineering enterprises’ internationalization from the viewpoint of industry subdivision and how information and competition alter peer effects. Furthermore, the heterogeneity of peer effects is analyzed based on manager characteristics.

In this study, multiple regression analysis was conducted on a sample of 38 Chinese engineering enterprises listed in the Engineering News-Record’s top 250 international contractors over the period of 2013–2021. This study collected the paired data from the enterprise annual reports and the China Stock Market & Accounting Research database.

The results reveal that (1) there exist peer effects within the subdivided industry of the engineering field; the quality of information disclosure of peer enterprises and degree of market competition moderate the peer effects; (2) the peer effects of internationalization are more pronounced in engineering enterprises with managers who have lower ability, hold greater power or are older.

The findings of this study contribute to understanding the peer effect in the process of internationalization of engineering enterprises, and help enterprises to effectively supervise the irrational behavior of top managers, so as to develop better internationalization strategies.

The results extend peer effects to the subdivision industry of the engineering field. Furthermore, this study also enriches the relevant research on peer effects among enterprises by empirically supporting the moderating role of information and competition as well as analyzing the heterogeneity of the peer effects from the perspective of manager characteristics.

Turnover intention is a critical predictor of an employee’s turnover behaviour. A high level of turnover rate significantly affects the productivity and morale of an enterprise. Previous research has indicated that job satisfaction plays a critical role in influencing an employee's turnover intention, but the underlying factors related to job satisfaction remain under-explored, which impedes the development of effective strategies for reducing turnover intention. In addition, little research examined job satisfaction and turnover intention in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically in the Chinese construction industry. This study aims to investigate the impact of job satisfaction on turnover intention among professionals in the construction industry.

A questionnaire survey was employed to collect viewpoints from 449 professionals in the Chinese construction industry, followed by descriptive analysis, correlation analysis and structural equation modelling analysis to derive results.

The findings indicate that professionals in the industry generally have a slightly high level of job satisfaction while a slightly low level of turnover intention in the special period of the pandemic outbreak. Leadership and management, training and career development and interpersonal relationships are critical underlying factors leading to their turnover intention. Although demographic factors have no moderating effect between job satisfaction and turnover intention, among them, age, marital status and years of working experience have strongly positive relationships with job satisfaction while significantly negative relationships with turnover intention.

The findings provide valuable insights to fully understand the critical factors leading to turnover intention from the perspective of job satisfaction, which is helpful in developing effective measures to address the turnover problems for enterprises in the Chinese construction industry and those industries with similar characteristics in other regions.