The effects of trust and coercive power on supplier integration

Supply chain integration nowadays is considered an important approach to building and sustaining competitive advantages. Many previous empirical researches have investigated trust and power between suppliers and customers, yet, the effects of trust and coercivepower on supply chain integration are still largely unknown. This study investigates trust, coercivepower and their interaction and their impact on internal and supplierintegration, based on data collected in Chinese supply chains. The results reveal that both trust and coercivepower improve internal and supplierintegration, but when trust is low, coercivepower reduces internal integration. Contradictory to conventional wisdom that coercivepower hinders cooperation, this study found that coercivepower improves supplierintegration in Chinese supply chains, with or without the presence of trust. This study provides significant insights for Chinese inter-organizational trust–power relationship management and supply chain integration practices.