The Influence of Cultural Intelligence and Institutional Distance of Chinese and Korean Contractors on the Performance of International Construction Projects

Cultural intelligence can effectively solve cross-cultural problems, which encourages contractors to adapt to the new international market environment. However, in international projects, the effectiveness of cultural intelligence can be complicated or moderated by the host country’s institutional environment. This study explores the impact of cultural intelligence on the performance of international construction projects and the moderating effect of institutional distance, then compares the differences between Chinese contractors and Korean contractors. In this paper, eleven hypotheses were proposed, and an empirical analysis was conducted to test the hypotheses and measure the impact of cultural intelligence on the performance of international construction projects and the moderating effect of institutional distance. The results from 144 valid questionnaires indicated that process capability and path capability in cultural intelligence have a significant positive impact on the performance of international construction projects, while formal institutional distance can positively moderate the relationship between position capability and international construction project performance. Moreover, Chinese and Korean contractors display significant differences in the moderating role of institutional distance. These findings provide theoretical support and strategic suggestions for not only contractors in China and Korea but for all international contractors seeking to improve project performance through cultural intelligence and institutional distance.