| Outward FDI from Emerging Economies: A Social Relational Perspective |
Received:October 15, 2017 Revised:October 15, 2017 |
Key Words: Emerging economies, internationalization, cross-border M&As, emerging market firms (EMFs), Chinese multinationals, relational perspective |
| Author Name | Affiliation | | Ping Deng* | Cleveland State Univesity |
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Abstract: |
| The growing importance of outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) from emerging economies has led to growing scholarly attention being paid to the internationalization of emerging market firms (EMFs), but collectively with limited new knowledge generation in this booming field. We contend that this is because scholars investigate EMF internationalization as a strategic decision, which eclipses other vital perspectives on the phenomenon. We challenge the predominant conceptualization of EMF internationalization as a strategic decision to introduce a social relational perspective as a new theoretical lens. A relational approach integrates political, economic, social, and cultural influences on EMFs in their international activities. The application of this lens permits us to generate exciting new research questions by shifting the focus of analysis on EMFs in three ways (1) from predictable variables to process, (2) from quantifiable factors to complex social realities, and (3) from outcomes to relational practices. |
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