Navigating Cross-Border Institutional Complexity: A Review and Assessment of Multinational Nonmarket Strategy Research

Summary: Multinational enterprises are deeply engaged in nonmarket strategy (NMS), including both corporate political activity (CPA) and strategic corporate social responsibility (SCSR). In this review, we document the multinational NMS research according to contributions’ theme, method, context, theory, and level of analysis. We then develop a multi-level, institutional multiplicity framework to organize our analysis of this large and fragmented body of literature. In so doing, we identify the most impactful contributions within three major themes – multinational CPA, multinational SCSR, and the integration of CPA and SCSR – and their respective subthemes, and call attention to limitations in the extant research. We also highlight promising avenues for future research, including expanding the scope of NMS to incorporate micro-foundations research, integrating macro-level scholarship on global institutions, placing greater attention on the interaction between CPA and SCSR, and focusing on important emergent global issues. Our review underscores the growing importance and missed opportunities of NMS research in the international business (IB) field.

Jonathan Doh is Associate Dean of Research and Global Engagement, Rammrath Chair in International Business, Co-Faculty Director of the Center for Global Leadership, and Professor of Management at the Villanova School of Business. He teaches and does research at the intersection of international business, strategic management, and corporate responsibility/sustainability. Doh has been a visiting professor at Vienna University of Economic and Business, University of Auckland, and University of Sydney, among others. Previously, he was on the faculty of American and Georgetown Universities and a trade official with the U.S. Department of Commerce with responsibilities related to NAFTA and North American trade. Jonathan is author or co-author of more than 80 refereed articles, 35 chapters, a dozen teaching cases and simulations, and eight books. His articles have appeared in AMR, AMP, AMLE, BEQ, JIBS, JOM, JMS, MISQ, OS, and SMJ. His co-authored books include Globalization and NGOs (Praeger, 2003), Handbook on Responsible Leadership and Governance in Global Business (Elgar, 2005), Multinationals and Development (Yale University Press, 2007), NGOs and Corporations: Conflict and Collaboration (Cambridge University Press, 2009), Aligning for Advantage: Competitive Strategies for the Political and Social Arenas (Oxford University Press, 2014), and International Management: Culture, Strategy, and Behavior (McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2005-2020), which is in its 11th edition. Jonathan has presented more than 100 papers and organized or chaired for more than 40 panels at AOM, AIB, SMS and other international conferences, and has served these organizations in numerous leadership capacities. He has been Associate or Consulting Editor of numerous journals and was Editor-in-Chief of Journal of World Business from 2014-2018. In January of 2020, he assumed the position of General Editor for Journal of Management Studies. In 2015 he was elected a fellow of the Academy of International Business. He holds a Ph.D. in strategic and international management from George Washington University.

Web: https://taxandbusinessonline.villanova.edu/faculty/jonathan-doh/

Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=pZ1A4wEAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao