A cross-cultural perspective on relational exchange

Abstract

Purpose-This study aims to examine relational norms in cross-cultural business settings. Cross-cultural business partners may differ in their normative orientations toward relational exchange. Owing to the high extent of international trade, there is a need for developing a more nuanced understanding of cross-cultural relational exchange. Design/methodology/approach-The repertory grid method was used to elicit the personal constructs characterizing the perceptions of business-to-business (B2B) relational exchange for 22 Russian and Finnish managers. These items were further categorized into categories of relational elements drawn from relational exchange literature using a content analysis. Then, the category means of scored importance and scored evaluations of domestic and foreign business partners were tested statistically. Findings-Relational norms of flexibility, information exchange, long-term orientation, mutuality and solidarity were equally important to both Russian and Finnish managers. The importance of a business partner's ability seems to be culturally dependent. Sharing the same cultural background might have an adverse effect when evaluating poorly functioning business relations. Research limitations/implications-The validity of these findings is limited to this context and material. Future research should repeat cross-cultural comparisons of the relational norms with more data and other nationalities. Practical implications-Firms should focus on long-term orientation and mutual targets to form well-functioning cross-cultural business relationships. Originality/value-This study provides new knowledge into B2B marketing literature by revealing the role of relational norms, business partner's ability and shared cultural background on functionality of cross-cultural business relations. It also demonstrates the use of the repertory grid method in studying perceptions of relational norms.

Size effect and merger dominance in salesforce integration

“…The findings suggest revisiting the relationship between organizational culture and merger performance. As indicated in earlier studies (Drori et al , 2011; Jukka et al , 2017; McClure, 2010; Oh, 2017; Sarala, 2010; Sarala et al , 2019; Weber and Camerer, 2003), a natural expectation is that organizational capability to integrate different organizational cultures is negatively affected by strategic change processes, and that firms inevitably face various cultural issues in effecting changes. However, recent studies (Brueller et al , 2015; Erel et al , 2015; Oh et al , 2014) identify a potential intervention of the size variable in the relationship and called for additional investigation of the relationship.…”

Measuring exchange norms and its impact on satisfaction in a B2C context

“…First, this research contributes to the literature on relational norms (Macneil, 1980; Paulssen et al, 2016). Whereas studies largely consider only relational norms (Valta, 2013) and assess them mostly in a B2B context (Ivens & Pardo, 2007; Jukka et al, 2017), we investigate both relational and discrete norms in a B2C services context. Among the 10 norms, Macneil (1980, 2000) defines in a general social context, we operationalize seven norms that correspond to the implicit rules that guide individuals’ and organizations’ behaviors in a commercial exchange.…”

“…According to Macneil (1980), norms refers to “a principle of right action binding upon the members of a group and serving to guide, control, or regulate proper and acceptable behavior” (p. 38). Commercial exchanges are thus governed not only by contracts, that is, explicit rules, but also by exchange norms, that is, implicit rules (Ivens & Pardo, 2007; Jukka, Andreeva, Blomqvist, & Puumalainen, 2017). Exchange norms are governance mechanisms that consist of expectations of behavior that two partners share (Heide & John, 1992; Valta, 2013).…”

“…The operationalization of Macneil’s (1980) norms is the subject of some research but is limited to B2B contexts (Blois & Ivens, 2006; Jukka et al, 2017). In B2C studies, research examines only three norms: Solidarity, Reciprocity, and Flexibility (Paulssen et al, 2016; Valta, 2013).…”

Do control mechanisms always promote collaborative performance: the role of formal institutions and business ties

“…For example, in the IT industry, the degree of buyer-supplier relational norms influences the quality of a buyer's engagement in inter-partner learning projectsinitiatives designed to ensure timely coordination with partners and improve IT co-sourcing performance (Hsu et al, 2019;. Thus, relational norms can reduce overall transaction costs and facilitate efficient collaboration (Jukka et al, 2017). Overall, relational norms tend to promote collaborative performance.…”