Initial Adoption vs. Institutionalization of E-Procurement in Construction Firms: The Role of Government in Developing Countries

Abstract

This study explores the role of government in fostering construction firms move from initial adoption to institutionalization of e-procurement in developing countries' context. It proposes the research model that consists of five external environmental constructs that are considered as factors influencing the different levels of e-procurement adoption. It uses PLS-SEM to analyze the data collected from 112 construction businesses in Vietnam in 2012. It finds that the role of government has an extremely significant influence on a decision of initial adoption of e-procurement in construction enterprises through government leadership, legal and regulatory infrastructure, information and technology infrastructure (ITI), and socio-economic and knowledge infrastructure. However, the role of government is less important to a decision of institutionalization of e-procurement when only ITI significantly influences on the decision-making. As a result, useful theoretical and practical implications are proposed.