Research on the structure and measurement of supplier adaptive behaviors

It is helpful to understand the interactions of manufacturer-supplier dyad by investigating the contents of supplier adaptive behaviors. The paper develops a measurement scale of supplier adaptive behaviors in Chinese context based on referring to extant research results and carrying out interviews. Then, the paper explores the content dimensions of supplier adaptive behaviors, using the method of exploratory factor analysis, and test the reliability and validity of the scale. It is shown that the contents of supplier adaptive behaviors consist of five dimensions, namely production adaptive behaviors, delivery adaptive behaviors, technical adaptive behaviors, product adaptive behaviors and operation strategy adaptive behaviors. The scale has good reliability and validity. The results can be used as a practical foundation and guidance for researchers and enterprises in the future.