Relationship insecurity and dark-side behaviours in business-to-business relationships

Despite the growing body of research on the dark side of business-to-business relationships over the past two decades, many gaps remain. The extant literature reveals a dearth of work on feelings of insecurity in business relations, which emanate from cognitions associated with suspicion, vulnerability and uncertainty. Drawing on theories from both psychology and management, this study contributes to filling the existing gap by considering the effect of relationship insecurity on coercive power, dysfunctional conflict, and opportunistic behaviour. We also include trust as a relational mechanism, examining its moderating effect on the association between relationship insecurity and dark-side behaviours. Using a self-administered questionnaire, our study collected data from 212 key account managers across various industries. The results indicate that relationship insecurity enhances opportunistic behaviour, dysfunctional conflict and coercive power in business-to-business relationships. As a theoretical contribution, this study conceptualises and empirically validates relationship insecurity as a higher-order construct associated with the underlying cognitions of suspicion, vulnerability and uncertainty. The findings also provide evidence supporting the role of relationship insecurity in the emergence of dark-side behaviours. Moreover, this study emphasises the importance of managerial efforts to understand what constitutes relationship insecurity and why addressing underlying anxieties is crucial for managing and mitigating potentially detrimental behaviours.