IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bpj/erjour/v14y2024i2p457-489n7.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Entrepreneurs’ Networking Styles and Normative Underpinnings during Institutional Transition

Author

Listed:
  • Zhang Chenjian

    (School of Management, University of Bath, Bath, UK)

  • Wang Tao

    (Graduate School of Economics, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan)

  • Ahlstrom David

    (Business School, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong)

Abstract

Existing network research has mainly adopted functional and/or structural approaches to study the instrumental goals behind entrepreneurs’ networking as well as the influence of personal position on access to resources and eventual performance. The variety of entrepreneurs’ networking styles and their normative underpinnings have not been adequately explored. Contextualized in China, this study asks: How do entrepreneurs’ understandings of social norms shape their networking styles? Through an inductive comparison of two entrepreneur generations in China, we identify three networking styles: guanxi-oriented networking, market-based networking, and mixed networking. We theorize that three types of norms shape these styles: market-inferred norms, dyadically formed norms, and identity-induced norms. This study provides new insights into the understanding of Chinese entrepreneurs’ distinctive networking styles and their normative underpinnings. Further, it suggests implications both for the wider study of entrepreneurs’ networking behaviors in transition economies, and for practitioners wishing to enhance their network building in China.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhang Chenjian & Wang Tao & Ahlstrom David, 2024. "Entrepreneurs’ Networking Styles and Normative Underpinnings during Institutional Transition," Entrepreneurship Research Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 14(2), pages 457-489, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:erjour:v:14:y:2024:i:2:p:457-489:n:7
    DOI: 10.1515/erj-2021-0200
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1515/erj-2021-0200
    Download Restriction: For access to full text, subscription to the journal or payment for the individual article is required.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1515/erj-2021-0200?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bpj:erjour:v:14:y:2024:i:2:p:457-489:n:7. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Peter Golla (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.degruyter.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.