Journal of World Business最新文献

Existing research offers limited understanding of how foreign acquirers enhance their chance of success in cross-border acquisition (CBA) deals. Engaging and extending signaling theory, this paper argues that during the bidding stage of an acquisition deal wherein information asymmetry is heightened between the bidder and seller, reputation of foreign bidders can serve as a signal of quality, increasing their likelihood of winning a deal over domestic bidders. Importantly, this signal is only effective when there is strong nationalist sentiment in the seller's country. Analyses of 580 bidders in 275 cross-border multi-bidder acquisition contests between 1994 and 2016 support our predictions.

Mixed and inconsistent research results linking International Entrepreneurial Orientation (IEO) to international performance have led to controversies about the value of IEO as a determinant of international performance. Our research proposes a new model that considers international dynamic capabilities (IDCs) as a mediator between IEO and international performance. Cultural and institutional distance are considered as boundary conditions. Using multi-country, multi-informant, and multi-source data collected from 303 SMEs in China and Tunisia, we find that IDCs mediate the effect of SMEs' IEO on international performance, but the impacts of three IEO dimensions on IDCs vary under different institutional and cultural contexts.

Research on language diversity in international business has shown that language is a core element of one's social identity and employees in MNEs often form homophily-based clusters with those who share their native language. Such clusters can significantly influence communication and knowledge sharing processes within MNEs. However, research assumes that language-based clusters are monolithic in nature. In this study of two MNE headquarters in India, we develop a model to depict the dynamic processes by which language intersects with other salient identity attributes such as gender, regional dialects, and education to change the composition of language-based clusters and alter group dynamics and organizational processes.

This study examines the impact of soft and hard infrastructure deficiencies on foreign firms’ investments in emerging markets and firm strategies to mitigate such impact. Soft infrastructure refers to intangible components such as institutions and regulations, while hard infrastructure encompasses tangible physical components like transportation, energy systems, and water supply. Drawing on resource dependence theory, we argue that foreign firms are likely to decrease their investment scale in countries with deficient soft and hard infrastructures to reduce uncertainty. We further propose two strategies to mitigate the negative effects of infrastructure deficiencies. First, foreign firms can adopt an influencing strategy, increasing their influence on the host government to alleviate the negative impact of soft infrastructure deficiencies. Second, a shielding strategy can be employed to reduce dependence on the host government, particularly when dealing with hard infrastructure deficiencies. We analyze data from a sample of 3,341 foreign firms operating in 88 emerging economies between 2005 and 2020 and find empirical support for these arguments, highlighting the significance of infrastructural considerations for foreign investments in emerging economies.

Traditional perspectives on interstate cooperation stress its benefits in facilitating foreign direct investment (FDI) by reducing uncertainty in international operations and enhancing mutual trust between countries. Our investigation explores another side of interstate cooperation by discussing the potential risks that can emerge from it. Our fulcrum for exploring risks comes from an explicit consideration of the divergent interests that can exist between nation states and business. We focus on the phenomenon known as bilateral treaties on extradition, which enable one country to request the repatriation of fugitives or convicted criminals from another country through official cooperation. Extradition treaties extend the jurisdictional influence of a firm's home country to a host country. This mechanism can create concerns for firms when they are motivated to use FDI to escape from their home country, especially from certain emerging markets with weak institutions. We propose that emerging market firms can be motivated to circumvent host countries that have established extradition treaties with their home country. Both private-owned and state-owned enterprises can show this behavior, albeit the effect is weaker for state-owned enterprises as compared to private-owned ones. The effect is particularly strong on firms that have documented malfeasance in their home country. We test these ideas on outward FDI made by Chinese firms in 106 foreign countries during 2001–2013.

This study distinguishes heterogeneity and inequality by exploring how nationality diversity influences leadership perceptions in multinational teams. Using two studies that assessed 105 (Study 1) and 40 (Study 2) teams comprising 4,120 and 2,180 dyads respectively, we find that nationality-based status influences leadership perceptions directly and indirectly through competence perceptions of higher-status peers. Nationality-based identity had no direct effect, but some evidence suggests an indirect effect on leadership that was mediated by warmth perceptions of culturally similar peers. These findings highlight nationality as a source of inequality beyond heterogeneity, elucidating the social perceptual paths that shape leadership in multinational contexts.

The study applies multiple logics based on institutional theory to explain how state ownership influences Chinese firms’ outward foreign direct investment (OFDI). A sample of Chinese listed private firms is used to understand which logic dominates the relationship between Chinese private firms’ state ownership and their OFDI in developed economies (OFDI-in-DE). We find that state ownership depresses Chinese private firms’ OFDI-in-DE, supporting the institution-(in)compatible logic, and that government subsidies weaken this negative effect, while negative media coverage of these firms strengthens it. The findings imply that the institution-incompatible logic dominates the influence of state ownership on Chinese private firms’ OFDI-in-DE.

Promoting women's empowerment in institutionally fragile contexts has been overlooked in global value chain (GVC) analysis, despite the recognition of its importance by UN SDG 5. Building on GVC governance and feminist institutional theories, we evaluate three aspects of an intervention led by an international non-governmental organization to empower women within socially and economically fragile environments. Using a unique dataset collected between 2018 and 2020 from 2,143 individuals in artisanal mining communities, our findings show that the intervention that promotes economic incentives and facilitates female leadership is positively related to women's inclusion and some empowerment indicators, yet its self-sustainability remains difficult within these challenging contexts.

This study applies a recruitment lens to examine how the proactive internationalization of new ventures might influence job seeker perceptions of organizational attractiveness. Using signaling theory and person-environment fit theory to develop our hypotheses, we employ a metric conjoint experiment with 209 job seekers (making 3344 decisions). Our multilevel regression results suggest that the international new venture (INV) strategy of proactive internationalization presents an ambivalent recruiting signal to job seekers. However, this effect is positively moderated by job seekers’ personal initiative and international experience. We offer implications for signaling theory in international entrepreneurship, and practical implications for staffing INVs.

Our study addresses an inconsistency in the literature on whether a lack of knowledge in early internationalizing firms is an obstacle or an advantage. We integrate learning, capabilities, and improvisation literature to reveal how case firms from New Zealand and Finland internationalize early under uncertainty and time pressure. We develop a process model and propositions to show how firms develop improvisation capabilities and subsequently rapidly acquire the international business knowledge that can explain early internationalization. Improvisation and the associated rapid learning complement the learning advantage of newness with an alternative explanation for early internationalization.