Particularistic ties and internationalisation: evidence from Taiwanese family business groups

Abstract

Based on a panel data analysis of family business groups in Taiwan, this study investigates the relationship between location specificity and particularistic ties from the resource-based view of the firm. The results indicate that a family-owned status has a positive effect on a business group's engagement in China. It provides indicative evidence that family business groups as a whole prefer cultural and economic proximate locations. By contrast, the use of particularistic ties in foreign affiliations has a negative effect on businesses groups' engagement in the Mainland Chinese market. The results suggest that a business group's decision to engage in a foreign market is embedded in its specific socioeconomic background and the use of particularistic ties as an indigenous management practice.