Mediating influence of Individual Commitment and Social Networks on the relationship between Project Communication and Perceived Project Performance: A Structural Equation Modelling Approach

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating effects of individual commitment and social networks on the relationship between project communication and perceived project performance. Many citizenship projects frequently fail to deliver on time, budget, specifications, and quality or do not deliver value to the public. This could be attributed to ineffective project communication, lack of individual commitment and inadequate social networks. Design/methodology/approach–A theoretical model and hypotheses are developed from literature review. A cross sectional data set collected from 322 project stakeholders from Uganda is used to validate the model. Findings – Structural Equation Modelling results reveal that individual commitment and social networks mediate the relationship between project communication and perceived project performance. The results also suggest that social networks elements have a stronger influence towards project performance than individual commitment elements. Research limitations/implications – The study focuses on behavioural constructs as predictors of perceived project performance. Although these constructs are robust and sufficiently represent the human aspects, the multidimensional nature of behavioural practises can be investigated further. Similarly, since perceived project performance is contextual and evolutionary, additional constructs may be incorporated into the validated model. Practical implications–The findings suggest that individual commitment and social networks are mediators of project communication and perceived project performance. Managers of citizenship projects need to create social networks with their stakeholders to increase perceived project performance. Similarly, there is need to enhance individual commitment that increases the likelihood of perceived project performance. Originality/value-Many classical studies are reported in different domains involving these constructs; however no existing empirical study focuses on how they are linked together. This is the first paper to investigate and systemically document the mediating effects on this relationship.