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The dilemma of institutional duality and multinational firms 1967-2017: Implications and future research

Akiebe Humphrey Ahworegba (Department of Strategy and Entrepreneurship, NEOMA Business School, Mont-Saint-Aignan, France)

Multinational Business Review

ISSN: 1525-383X

Article publication date: 18 May 2018

Issue publication date: 12 July 2018

638

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to improve the understanding of the dilemma of institutional duality (ID) confronting multinational corporations and to propose a workable solution for this problem.

Design/methodology/approach

The author has searched the literature using several terms directly related to the dilemma of ID and multinational firms.

Findings

The findings reveal that to attain “legitimacy”, subsidiaries strive to balance institutional pressures stemming from external environments in the host country and their parent organizations. Understanding institutional theories of multinational corporations enables the subsidiaries to manage external pressures. ID impact varies among subsidiaries, depending on institutional contexts and internal strategies of subsidiaries.

Originality/value

An “institutional duality incidence model” portraying how dual institutions make “legitimacy” problematic for subsidiaries is proposed. A framework for identifying factors generating ID dilemma and their management approach is also proposed. It is concluded that a multinational corporation that recognizes ID as a central concern is more likely to achieve and maintain a higher level of harmony with its subsidiaries and host countries.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The author is grateful to Dr Chang Hoon Oh, the Editor of Multinational Business Review for his unique assessment that makes this article a reality. The author thanks his blind reviewers for their sound judgment; no doubt, the absence of their critiques would have blurred the overall contribution of this paper. He would also like to thank Dr Ana Colovic, a Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at NEOMA Business School in France, who provided great insights which improved this research work.

Citation

Ahworegba, A.H. (2018), "The dilemma of institutional duality and multinational firms 1967-2017: Implications and future research", Multinational Business Review, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 145-172. https://doi.org/10.1108/MBR-03-2017-0014

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited

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