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PurposeThe paper aims to extend research on public‐private partnerships (PPP) by exploring the path toward procedural justice and cooperation performance through contracts.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses equity theory to address inter‐partner cooperation in PPPs. The paper emphasizes how procedural fairness, as perceived by partners in a PPP, influences cooperation effects. Using both social exchange theory and transaction cost theory, it hypothesizes that procedural fairness improves cooperation effects by enhancing two kinds of contracts: the control‐formal contract and the informal contract.FindingsThe regression analysis suggests that procedural fairness indirectly affects three kinds of cooperation effects – direct effects, knowledge‐created effects, and social effects – by increasing formal and informal contracts.Research limitations/implicationsFurther research might address the antecedents of procedural justice.Practical implicationsThe paper suggests that procedural justice is important to PPPs and that contracts mediate this relationship.Originality/valueThe paper enriches PPP research, especially with regard to procedural formalization, contracts, and cooperation performance.

PurposeThe paper aims to introduce the papers in this special issue which highlight the importance of cooperation in organizations, and outline future research directions.Design/methodology/approachConceptual approaches to cooperation in organizations are described and a brief outline is given to each paper in the special issue.FindingsThis special issue brings together studies that enhance our theoretical understanding of cooperation, addressing core issues related to the role of cultural differences, virtual communication, team processes, leader behavior, and the impact of norms on cooperation.Practical implicationsFactors that facilitate or hinder cooperation in organizations are highlighted, and suggestions on how to deal with those issues in practice are provided. The papers facilitate understanding of the role of cultural differences, communication, team processes, and leader behavior on cooperation in organizations.Originality/valueThe paper provides an introduction to the special issue.

This article assesses the impact of job insecurity on the mediating role of trust in the relationship between breach of the psychological contract and employee attitudes. It is argued that both objective and subjective job insecurity influence the relation between breach and trust, as well as the relation between breach and affective commitment, job satisfaction and intention to quit. Hypotheses for different configurations of subjective and objective job insecurity were tested in a sample of 834 Dutch workers employed in 48 organizations. In a multiple-group analysis, the relationships between breach, trust and employee attitudes in four groups of employees in different configurations of job security were analysed. The results show that objective job insecurity moderates the relationship between breach and trust. However, contrary to expectations, trust only partially mediates between breach and employee attitudes in all employment situations.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between supervisors' conflict strategies and subordinates' affective commitment and absenteeism.Design/methodology/approachTo test the hypotheses, the authors conducted a survey of 173 higher educated employees in consulting and staff functions. They measured supervisory conflict management by asking subordinates to rate the conflict strategy of their superior. For the measurement of absenteeism the officially recorded sick leave figures of days per year were used.FindingsThe results show a pure mediating effect of commitment in the relationship between supervisory integration strategy and absenteeism. The non‐confrontation strategy is negatively related to commitment, but neither directly nor indirectly related to absenteeism. There is no direct or indirect (through commitment) relationship between the supervisory controlling strategy and absenteeism.Practical implicationsSuggestions for absence management and management development are offered.Originality/valueThe work advances the thinking on supervisory cooperative and competitive behavior and the operating mechanisms between this behavior and employee work attitudes and behavior.

PurposeThe paper's aim is to introduce the interactive acculturation model (IAM) of Bourhiset al.to predict how disconcordance in acculturation orientations between host community and immigrant workers relates to the quality of intergroup work‐relations.Design/methodology/approachThe sample consisted of 141 host community (Dutch) and 41 non‐western immigrant workers of a postal service company who filled out a questionnaire. Methods of analyses include analysis of variance and multiple regression.FindingsIn line with the IAM, results showed that a higher disconcordance in preferred acculturation orientations between host community and immigrant workers related to a poorer quality of intergroup work‐relations. However, intergroup contact moderated this relationship differently for host community and immigrant workers.Research limitations/implicationsData are cross‐sectional and collected in one organization. Future studies should replicate the findings to other organizational contexts, cultural groups, and collect longitudinal data to determine causal effects.Practical implicationsOrganizations should monitor disconcordance in acculturation orientations amongst host community and immigrant workers. A multicultural culture in organizations may reduce disconcordance in acculturation orientations between host community and immigrant workers.Originality/valueThe paper helps to explain the mixed findings in cultural diversity research so far, by demonstrating that disconcordance in acculturation orientations relates negatively to intergroup work‐relations in a multicultural workplace.

PurposeIntercultural interfirm relationships have become a new challenge for international management. The purpose of this paper is to explore differences in computer‐mediated negotiation behavior between participants who come from nations which differ as regards two major cultural values: individualism and collectivism.Design/methodology/approachThis is an empirical study with a sample containing 170 negotiators with different cultural backgrounds; it comprises content analysis; and multivariate analysis of variance models.FindingsComparing negotiators from Asian, North American, and European cultures, it is found that people who come from an individualist culture exhibit different negotiation strategies to individuals from a collectivist culture.Practical implicationsBased on the results management may sensitize negotiators in intercultural interfirm relationships to their counterparts' communication strategies.Originality/valueThe paper highlights how negotiators' cultures affect their strategic orientation.

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to examine the influence of group composition in cultural values on conflict management styles in groups.Design/methodology/approachA field study using data from 125 groups was conducted.FindingsThe results show that in groups where members feel they are equal and connected (horizontal collectivism) cooperation is better, and contending and avoiding conflict management styles are used less. When people view themselves as unequal and independent (vertical individualism (VI)) the avoiding style of conflict management is more frequently used. Within‐group similarity (low variety) in VI leads to more cooperation and less avoidant conflict management strategies as well as less third party interventions. High group variety in views of being unequal, but interconnected (vertical collectivism), as well as in the views of being equal but independent (horizontal individualism), leads to more cooperative conflict resolution strategy.Practical implicationsThe results show that small and consistent within‐group differences in cultural values are beneficial (with the exception of VI) for cooperative strategies. By showing that group compositional configurations in cultural values (vertical/horizontal individualism and collectivism) impact on conflict management strategies, the study has important implications for team design.Originality/valueThe paper extends current research by conceptualizing cultural values (it considers the horizontal vs vertical orientation in individualism‐collectivism) as configural group properties and by testing the impact of specific team configurations in cultural values on conflict management strategies.

Local public networks can be governed in many different ways. Among scholars as well as among practitioners, there is some debate about the best approach. Based on literature, this article examines the relationship between local public network governance roles, contingency factors, and network performance in a theoretically informed way. Governance roles are positioned on a continuum from top-down (commissioner) to bottom-up (facilitator), with an intermediate area (coproducer). How governance roles influence the performance of local public networks is assumed to depend on contingency factors, which might explain the inconsistent results of studies examining this influence. An integrated model of local public network governance is presented that includes four contingency factors: the number of network participants, diversity of network members, degree of customizability of service demands, and the number of new network participants. The model can be applied to the heterogeneous contexts that local governments encounter when governing local public networks.