Abstract
Building good partner relationships with suppliers is very important for buyers in the supply chain. This study tried to clarify how dependence and trust drive buyer’s relational behaviors and how the influence of relational behaviors on buyer performance and relational risk for long-term relational development. Buyers can improve their decision, process and effectiveness when develop buyer-supplier relationships through this viewpoint. This study examines the theoretical structure of how buyers’ dependence and trust of suppliers influence their relational behaviors and their performance and relational risk in the relationships. This study selects five companies which are among the best in their industries as case study examples and examines the influences of dependence, trust, relational behaviors on buyer’s performance and relational risk. Finally, based on literature and the case analysis, this study constructs an influence framework for assessing the impacts of dependence, trust on buyer performance and relational risk, along with the sources of relational risk. It suggests effective measures buyers can take to improve performance, reduce relational risk and maintain the long-term relationship.