Volume 45 (2015): Issue 1 (March 2015)

The objective of this exploratory study is to determine whether and (if so) how perceived cultural differences influence relationship quality.

To make this determination this study analyzed the cooperation of 278 Polish exporters and importers with their German and Chinese partners. Indicators of perceived cultural differences by cooperating companies were created, and then linear regression models were derived, showing the dependence of relationship quality dimensions on the perceived cultural differences. The findings confirmed the impact of the cultural differences perceived by Polish partners on all dimensions of inter-firm relationship quality. However, not all the perceived differences influenced the relationships. The perception of the differences did not depend strongly on the partner’s country of origin.

This study identifies new antecedents of relationship quality, which not only contribute to the international business theory but also suggests practical managerial implications. On the whole, managers can improve relationship quality if they behave similarly to their partners.

Absorptive capacity (ACAP) enables firm to adjust to a rapidly changing environment and achieve sustained competitive advantage. This study contributes to the existing body of knowledge on ACAP by providing a comprehensive literature review of the various conceptual attributes of the construct, its determinants, outcomes, and positive and negative consequences of using its input-oriented, output-oriented, and perceptive measurement modes. Proposals for constructing ACAP based on the Community Innovation Survey (CIS) empirically illustrate for the conceptual part of the paper. Additionally, combining concepts of absorptive capacity and open innovation (which is still rare in the literature) provides a new perspective on the role of absorptive capacity in opening up the innovation process. This advances the understanding of both inter-related proposals. The article also identifies key problems and formulates future research directions to improve the multi-level characteristics of absorptive capacity.

One of the most important tasks for Brazil after the Second World War was to change the structure of its economy. Due to a relatively low level of domestic industry, consecutive governments found industrialization the main priority and focused on industrial policy to foster that process. One can argue that industrial policy was the core element of Brazilian economic policy throughout the post-war period, until the liberalization reforms of the 1980 s. Political and economic traditions, together with rapid changes in global economy over the last decades, have had a huge impact on more recent Brazilian economic policy. On one hand, the country has kept looking back to the protectionist practices that have shaped its economy since the emergence of the modern Brazilian state, on the other, Brazil’s ambition is to become a leading emerging economy and serious partner in the developed world. A dual development track, and continuous inner-conflict between protectionism and liberalism, is clearly visible in Brazilian economic policy and often leads to contradictory measures being taken by successive governments. The objectives of the article is to provide a contextualized analysis of the evolution of Brazil’s economic growth strategy, with a particular focus on the role of economic and political traditions, and institutions.

The dynamic capabilities view posits that a firm’s success is largely driven by its ability to adapt to a changing environment to secure value creating potential and, thus achieve a competitive advantage. The dynamic capabilities perspective has attracted much scholarly attention in the last two decades, as reflected in the proliferation of conceptual and research articles in the strategic management literature. Knowledge about the relationship between dynamic capabilities and other theoretical concepts within the strategic management field remains limited. This paper therefore synthesizes the literature and uses it to develop a more clear relationship between notions of dynamic capabilities, resources, assets, competencies and static capabilities. Potential areas of future research are also outlined.

This research empirically explores the relation between carbon dioxide emission and economic growth during the period 1992-2010, using panel data on the European Union countries. Both fixed and random effect models are employed to test the Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) relationship between CO2 emissions and GDP per capita. While no U-shaped EKC was confirmed empirically for all 28 current EU member states, the graphical analysis demonstrates a justified turning point for CO2 emissions as GDP per capita reaches the level of 23,000 USD. Furthermore, there is a firm empirical ground for the EKC hypothesis based on data from 16 older, relatively high-income EU states. Thus, though not empirically confirmed, there is ample data verifying the existence of the EKC in EU economies.

This article analyzes the investor reaction to information on the final value of dividend payouts for companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, using the event study methodology. Our research shows that investor reaction is positive for irregular payouts and both the initiation of and the increase in payouts, while negative for the resumption and of and decreases in payouts. The magnitude of the reaction is also higher for the initiation of payouts than either the increases in, or irregular payouts.

This study contributes to the literature on dividend policy by presenting results for the emerging economy of Poland. Moreover, it pays particular attention to statistical issues related to the event study methodology, i.e., the verification of assumptions behind the method of returns model estimation. It also compares investor reaction to dividend changes assessed on the basis of different measures, and underlines the dependence of the results on the choice of the parameters assumed (e.g., event window length).