IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/iburev/v31y2022i1s0969593121001013.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Disentangling the effects of domestic corporate political activity and political connections on firms’ internationalisation: Evidence from US retail MNEs

Author

Listed:
  • Shirodkar, Vikrant
  • Batsakis, Georgios
  • Konara, Palitha
  • Mohr, Alexander

Abstract

Scholars are increasingly investigating the implications of firms’ domestic corporate political activity (CPA) and political connections on their internationalisation prospects. In this paper, using insights from the resource dependence theory, we argue that domestic CPA and political connections developed within the home country have contrasting effects on firms’ international expansion, such that, while domestic CPAs (mainly, lobbying and campaign contributions) facilitate internationalisation, political connections deter internationalisation. We also argue that this relationship is moderated by firms’ international experience and product diversification. We test our hypotheses using a panel dataset comprising 38 retail Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) originating in the United States (US) whose activities we traced over the 16-year period 2003−2018. Our findings support our hypotheses.

Suggested Citation

  • Shirodkar, Vikrant & Batsakis, Georgios & Konara, Palitha & Mohr, Alexander, 2022. "Disentangling the effects of domestic corporate political activity and political connections on firms’ internationalisation: Evidence from US retail MNEs," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(1).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:iburev:v:31:y:2022:i:1:s0969593121001013
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ibusrev.2021.101889
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969593121001013
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ibusrev.2021.101889?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.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Brian Shaffer & Amy J. Hillman, 2000. "The development of business–government strategies by diversified firms," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(2), pages 175-190, February.
    2. Andrew Delios & Witold J. Henisz, 2003. "Political hazards, experience, and sequential entry strategies: the international expansion of Japanese firms, 1980–1998," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(11), pages 1153-1164, November.
    3. Ilya Okhmatovskiy, 2010. "Performance Implications of Ties to the Government and SOEs: A Political Embeddedness Perspective," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(6), pages 1020-1047, September.
    4. Aggarwal, Rajesh K. & Meschke, Felix & Wang, Tracy Yue, 2012. "Corporate Political Donations: Investment or Agency?," Business and Politics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 14(1), pages 1-38, April.
    5. Thomas W. Bates & Kathleen M. Kahle & René M. Stulz, 2009. "Why Do U.S. Firms Hold So Much More Cash than They Used To?," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 64(5), pages 1985-2021, October.
    6. Jonathan P. Doh & Thomas Lawton & Tazeeb Rajwani, 2012. "Advancing Nonmarket Strategy Research : Institutional Perspectives in a Changing World," Post-Print hal-02276718, HAL.
    7. Jacquemin, Alexis P & Berry, Charles H, 1979. "Entropy Measure of Diversification and Corporate Growth," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(4), pages 359-369, June.
    8. Niklas Åkerman, 2015. "International opportunity realization in firm internationalization: Non-linear effects of market-specific knowledge and internationalization knowledge," Journal of International Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 13(3), pages 242-259, September.
    9. W. Chan Kim & Peter Hwang & William P. Burgers, 1989. "Global diversification strategy and corporate profit performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(1), pages 45-57, January.
    10. Nauro Campos & Francesco Giovannoni, 2007. "Lobbying, corruption and political influence," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 131(1), pages 1-21, April.
    11. Amy J. Hillman & Asghar Zardkoohi & Leonard Bierman, 1999. "Corporate political strategies and firm performance: indications of firm‐specific benefits from personal service in the U.S. government," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(1), pages 67-81, January.
    12. Rodolphe Durand & Robert M. Grant & Tammy L. Madsen & Sinziana Dorobantu & Aseem Kaul & Bennet Zelner, 2017. "Nonmarket strategy research through the lens of new institutional economics: An integrative review and future directions," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(1), pages 114-140, January.
    13. Grier, Kevin B. & Munger, Michael C. & Roberts, Brian E., 1994. "The Determinants of Industry Political Activity, 1978–1986," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 88(4), pages 911-926, December.
    14. Ziliang Deng & Jiayan Yan & Marc van Essen, 2018. "Heterogeneity of political connections and outward foreign direct investment," Post-Print hal-02312122, HAL.
    15. John A. Dawson, 2007. "Scoping and conceptualising retailer internationalisation," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 7(4), pages 373-397, July.
    16. Yan, Zheng Joseph & Zhu, Jiuhua Cherrie & Fan, Di & Kalfadellis, Paul, 2018. "An institutional work view toward the internationalization of emerging market firms," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 53(5), pages 682-694.
    17. Guy L. F. Holburn & Bennet A. Zelner, 2010. "Political capabilities, policy risk, and international investment strategy: evidence from the global electric power generation industry," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(12), pages 1290-1315, December.
    18. Shirodkar, Vikrant & Mohr, Alexander T., 2015. "Explaining foreign firms’ approaches to corporate political activity in emerging economies: The effects of resource criticality, product diversification, inter-subsidiary integration, and business tie," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(4), pages 567-579.
    19. Jeffrey M Wooldridge, 2010. "Econometric Analysis of Cross Section and Panel Data," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 2, volume 1, number 0262232588, April.
    20. A Delios & W J Henisz, 2003. "Policy uncertainty and the sequence of entry by Japanese firms, 1980–1998," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 34(3), pages 227-241, May.
    21. Cao, Zhiyan & Fernando, Guy D. & Tripathy, Arindam & Upadhyay, Arun, 2018. "The economics of corporate lobbying," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 54-80.
    22. Ma, Xufei & Ding, Zhujun & Yuan, Lin, 2016. "Subnational institutions, political capital, and the internationalization of entrepreneurial firms in emerging economies," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 51(5), pages 843-854.
    23. Peter J. Buckley & Mark Casson, 2010. "Analysing Foreign Market Entry Strategies: Extending the Internalisation Approach," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: The Multinational Enterprise Revisited, chapter 8, pages 177-204, Palgrave Macmillan.
    24. Mohr, Alex & Batsakis, Georgios, 2018. "Firm resources, cultural distance and simultaneous international expansion in the retail sector," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 113-124.
    25. Robert M Grant, 1987. "Multinationality and Performance among British Manufacturing Companies," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 18(3), pages 79-89, September.
    26. Aggarwal Rajesh K. & Meschke Felix & Wang Tracy Yue, 2012. "Corporate Political Donations: Investment or Agency?," Business and Politics, De Gruyter, vol. 14(1), pages 1-40, April.
    27. Margarethe F. Wiersema & Harry P. Bowen, 2008. "Corporate diversification: the impact of foreign competition, industry globalization, and product diversification," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(2), pages 115-132, February.
    28. Yadong Luo, 2001. "Toward a Cooperative View of MNC-Host Government Relations: Building Blocks and Performance Implications," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 32(3), pages 401-419, September.
    29. Qian, Gongming, 2002. "Multinationality, product diversification, and profitability of emerging US small- and medium-sized enterprises," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 17(6), pages 611-633, October.
    30. Vikrant Shirodkar & Alexander T. Mohr, 2015. "Resource Tangibility and Foreign Firms’ Corporate Political Strategies in Emerging Economies: Evidence from India," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 55(6), pages 801-825, December.
    31. Swoboda, Bernhard & Elsner, Stefan & Olejnik, Edith, 2015. "How do past mode choices influence subsequent entry? A study on the boundary conditions of preferred entry modes of retail firms," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(3), pages 506-517.
    32. Sergio Mariotti & Marco Mutinelli & Lucia Piscitello, 2003. "Home country employment and foreign direct investment: evidence from the Italian case," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 27(3), pages 419-431, May.
    33. Mara Faccio, 2006. "Politically Connected Firms," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(1), pages 369-386, March.
    34. Wood, Donna J., 1985. "The Strategic Use of Public Policy: Business Support for the 1906 Food and Drug Act," Business History Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 59(3), pages 403-432, October.
    35. Amjad Hadjikhani & Emilene Leite & Cecilia Pahlberg, 2019. "Business and Socio-Political Interaction in International Service Projects: The Case of Brazil," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 59(1), pages 171-200, February.
    36. Lawton, Thomas & Rajwani, Tazeeb & Doh, Jonathan, 2013. "The antecedents of political capabilities: A study of ownership, cross-border activity and organization at legacy airlines in a deregulatory context," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 228-242.
    37. Abagail McWilliams & David D. Van Fleet & Kenneth D. Cory, 2002. "Raising Rivals’ Costs Through Political Strategy: An Extension of Resource‐based Theory," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(5), pages 707-724, July.
    38. Hamilton, J. Brooke & Hoch, David, 1997. "Ethical Standards for Business Lobbying: Some Practical Suggestions," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 7(3), pages 117-129, July.
    39. Alvaro Cuervo‐Cazurra & Mehmet Erdem Genc, 2011. "Obligating, Pressuring, and Supporting Dimensions of the Environment and the Non‐Market Advantages of Developing‐Country Multinational Companies," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(2), pages 441-455, March.
    40. Amy J Hillman & William P Wan, 2005. "The determinants of MNE subsidiaries' political strategies: evidence of institutional duality," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 36(3), pages 322-340, May.
    41. Du, Xingqiang & Luo, Jin-hui, 2016. "Political Connections, Home Formal Institutions, and Internationalization: Evidence from China," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 12(1), pages 103-133, March.
    42. J.P. Eggers, 2012. "All experience is not created equal: learning, adapting, and focusing in product portfolio management," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(3), pages 315-335, March.
    43. Kostovetsky, Leonard, 2015. "Political capital and moral hazard," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(1), pages 144-159.
    44. John M. de Figueiredo & Brian Kelleher Richter, 2013. "Advancing the Empirical Research on Lobbying," NBER Working Papers 19698, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    45. Deng, Ziliang & Yan, Jiayan & van Essen, Marc, 2018. "Heterogeneity of political connections and outward foreign direct investment," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 893-903.
    46. Lin Cui & Fuming Jiang, 2012. "State ownership effect on firms' FDI ownership decisions under institutional pressure: a study of Chinese outward-investing firms," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 43(3), pages 264-284, April.
    47. Timothy P Blumentritt & Douglas Nigh, 2002. "The Integration of Subsidiary Political Activities in Multinational Corporations," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 33(1), pages 57-77, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Gammeltoft, Peter & Panibratov, Andrei, 2024. "Emerging market multinationals and the politics of internationalization," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(3).
    2. Yanyan Li & Yu Gao & Shanxing Gao, 2023. "Organizational slack, entrepreneurial orientation, and corporate political activity: From the behavioral theory of the firm," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-12, December.
    3. Shirodkar, Vikrant & Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele & Rajwani, Tazeeb & Lawton, Thomas C., 2024. "MNE nonmarket strategy in a changing world: Complexities, varieties, and a values-based approach," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(2).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Shirodkar, Vikrant & Rajwani, Tazeeb & Stadler, Christian & Hautz, Julia & Mayer, Michael C.J., 2022. "Corporate Political Activity and Firm Performance: The Moderating Effects of International and Product Diversification," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 28(4).
    2. Shirodkar, Vikrant & Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele & Rajwani, Tazeeb & Lawton, Thomas C., 2024. "MNE nonmarket strategy in a changing world: Complexities, varieties, and a values-based approach," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(2).
    3. Banerjee, Shantanu & Venaik, Sunil & Brewer, Paul, 2019. "Analysing corporate political activity in MNC subsidiaries through the integration-responsiveness framework," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 28(5), pages 1-1.
    4. Shantanu Banerjee & Sunil Venaik, 2018. "The Effect of Corporate Political Activity on MNC Subsidiary Legitimacy: An Institutional Perspective," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 58(5), pages 813-844, October.
    5. Vikrant Shirodkar & Namita Shete, 2021. "The Impact of Domestic CSR on the Internationalisation of Emerging-Market Multinational Enterprises: Evidence from India," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 61(6), pages 799-829, December.
    6. Amrita Saha & Vikrant Shirodkar & Thomas C. Lawton, 2023. "Bimodal lobbying and trade policy outcomes: Evidence from corporate political activity under uncertainty in India," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 6(1), pages 24-46, March.
    7. Tahiru Azaaviele Liedong & Daniel Aghanya & Tazeeb Rajwani, 2020. "Corporate Political Strategies in Weak Institutional Environments: A Break from Conventions," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 161(4), pages 855-876, February.
    8. Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele & Aghanya, Daniel & Jimenez, Alfredo & Rajwani, Tazeeb, 2023. "Corporate political activity and bribery in Africa: Do internet penetration and foreign ownership matter?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    9. Pei Sun & Jonathan P. Doh & Tazeeb Rajwani & Donald Siegel, 2021. "Navigating cross-border institutional complexity: A review and assessment of multinational nonmarket strategy research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(9), pages 1818-1853, December.
    10. Gammeltoft, Peter & Panibratov, Andrei, 2024. "Emerging market multinationals and the politics of internationalization," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 33(3).
    11. Schnyder, Gerhard & Sallai, Dorottya, 2020. "Between a rock and a hard place: Internal- and external institutional fit of MNE subsidiary political strategy in contexts of institutional upheaval," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(2).
    12. Mbalyohere, Charles & Lawton, Thomas & Boojihawon, Roshan & Viney, Howard, 2017. "Corporate political activity and location-based advantage: MNE responses to institutional transformation in Uganda’s electricity industry," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 52(6), pages 743-759.
    13. Jonas Puck & Thomas Lawton & Alexander Mohr, 2018. "The Corporate Political Activity of MNCs: Taking Stock and Moving Forward," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 58(5), pages 663-673, October.
    14. Tahiru Azaaviele Liedong, 2022. "The Liability of Tribe in Corporate Political Activity: Ethical Implications for Political Contestability," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 181(3), pages 623-644, December.
    15. Rajwani, Tazeeb & Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele, 2015. "Political activity and firm performance within nonmarket research: A review and international comparative assessment," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 50(2), pages 273-283.
    16. Alfredo Jiménez & Diana Benito-Osorio & Carmen Palmero-Cámara, 2015. "Learning from Risky Environments: Global Diversification Strategies of Spanish MNEs," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 55(4), pages 485-509, August.
    17. Nathaniel Boso & Joseph Amankwah-Amoah & Dominic Essuman & Oluwaseun E. Olabode & Patience Bruce & Magnus Hultman & James Kofi Kutsoati & Ogechi Adeola, 2023. "Configuring political relationships to navigate host-country institutional complexity: Insights from Anglophone sub-Saharan Africa," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 54(6), pages 1055-1089, August.
    18. Naoki Yasuda & Hitoshi Mitsuhashi, 2017. "Learning from Political Change and the Development of MNCs’ Political Capabilities: Evidence from the Global Mining Industry," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 57(5), pages 749-774, October.
    19. Shirodkar, Vikrant & Mohr, Alexander T., 2015. "Explaining foreign firms’ approaches to corporate political activity in emerging economies: The effects of resource criticality, product diversification, inter-subsidiary integration, and business tie," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(4), pages 567-579.
    20. Ziad F. Elsahn & Maureen Benson-Rea, 2018. "Political Schemas and Corporate Political Activities During Foreign Market Entry: A Micro-process Perspective," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 58(5), pages 771-811, October.

    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:eee:iburev:v:31:y:2022:i:1:s0969593121001013. 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.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/133/description#description .

    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.