Guanxi’s contribution to commitment and productive conflict between banks and small and medium enterprises in China
Document Type
Journal article
Source Publication
Group & Organization Management
Publication Date
12-1-2017
Volume
42
Issue
6
First Page
819
Last Page
845
Publisher
Sage Publications, Inc.
Keywords
guanxi, cooperation and competition, relationship commitment, productive conflict
Abstract
Guanxi has long been thought to play a critical role in understanding and practicing leadership, teamwork, and organizational partnerships in China. Researchers have argued that guanxi can be usefully understood as a kind of close relationship that obliges partners to assist each other. This study proposes that the theory of cooperation and competition as developed in the West can help us to understand how guanxi affects partner relationships. Findings from data on partnerships between banks and small or medium enterprises in Shanghai support the argument that guanxi strengthens cooperative goals, which in turn results in relationship commitment and productive conflict. Our study’s findings suggest that partners with guanxi interact in mutually beneficial ways that enhance their cooperative goals. Further research is needed to provide a stronger foundation for the causal inferences of these findings, and to investigate whether guanxi as it is known in China can also serve to develop cooperative goals, relationship commitment, and productive conflict among partnerships in other Asian societies and in the West.
DOI
10.1177/1059601116672781
Print ISSN
10596011
E-ISSN
15523993
Funding Information
This work has been supported by the General Research Fund project (CB13A9) awarded by the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong. {CB13A9}
Publisher Statement
Copyright © The Author(s) 2016. Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Wong, A., Wei, L., Wang, X. & Tjosvold, D. (2016). Guanxi’s contribution to commitment and productive conflict between banks and small and medium enterprises in China. Group & Organization Management, 42(6), 819-845. doi: 10.1177/1059601116672781