海外子公司的战略网络、社会资本与网络学习研究

【作者】 王宇露；

【导师】 李元旭；

【作者基本信息】 复旦大学 ， 企业管理， 2008， 博士

【摘要】 20世纪80年代以来,快速响应和经营本土化的浪潮使得海外子公司的战略自主性逐渐增强,处于东道国经营一线的海外子公司正逐渐从母公司知识的接收者转变为重要的学习者和知识贡献者。网络逐渐成为海外子公司创造知识、获取知识和利用知识的重要来源。本文从海外子公司的战略网络结构入手,研究海外子公司在战略网络的社会资本及其网络学习行为,选取战略网络中日益重要的一个子网:东道国网络进行实证,构建东道国网络结构、东道国网络社会资本与东道国网络学习效果的关系模型,为海外子公司科学管理东道国网络,改善网络学习效果,提升竞争优势提供理论指导。通过对社会嵌入理论的批判继承,本研究首先提出了嵌入的三维度构成理论,结合海外子公司理论,发展了海外子公司的战略网络理论。(1)从关系嵌入、位置嵌入和结构嵌入三个维度解构了海外子公司的战略网络结构。(2)提出了海外子公司战略网络结构的差异化问题,并从母公司的环境压力、母公司对海外子公司的战略定位、网络成员的资源层级位置和资源量能分布、海外子公司的自我监控力四方面剖析了网络结构差异化的原因。(3)从偶得的演化机制和目标引导的演化机制两个方面分析了海外子公司战略网络结构的演化机制和过程,探讨了产业重大事件、网络成员对中心位置的追逐和利用、资源需求的变化等因素对战略网络结构演化的诱导作用。其次,本研究对海外子公司的社会资本理论进行了发展。研究提出:(1)社会网络促成了社会资本,但社会网络并不等同于社会资本。经济网络是社会网络建构的一种方式。(2)海外子公司社会资本由四个维度:认知资本、关系资本、位置资本和结构资本构成。(3)海外子公司社会资本的经济功能包括价值创造功能和网络治理功能。(4)海外子公司的社会资本有三个来源:社会网络生成、个人社会资本转化和母公司社会资本的转移。(5)战略网络的形成、社会网络的形成与社会资本的生成三者间是密不可分的关系。(6)社会资本的构建、平衡和防止贬值是海外子公司管理社会资本的三个重要方面。再次,本研究发展了海外子公司的网络学习理论。研究提出:(1)网络学习是网络成员在网络环境下与其他网络成员进行知识创造、吸收和利用的经济社会过程。网络学习具有社会性和互动性特征。(2)网络的学习效应体现在知识共享效应、知识扩散效应和知识溢出效应三方面。(3)海外子公司网络学习的主体分为个人、群体和组织三个层次,它们之间的互动通过前馈学习和反馈学习两种机制得以实现。(4)探索型学习和利用型学习是海外子公司网络学习的两种方式,它们是同时存在而不是非此即彼的关系。(5)网络的学习通过知识创造、知识获取、知识吸收、知识整合和知识利用等五种机制得以实现。(6)海外子公司网络学习由组织间学习和集体学习两种类型构成。(7)海外子公司在战略网络中的十六种角色决定了网络学习的具体行为。(8)海外子公司网络学习与组织内学习存在密切的关系,海外子公司会通过八种转换机制在网络学习方式与组织内学习方式间进行转换。基于对海外子公司的战略网络、社会资本理论以及网络学习理论的全面考察,本研究构建了东道国网络结构、东道国网络社会资本与东道国网络学习效果的关系模型,并提出了相应假设。在对各变量进行测度的基础上,对在华跨国公司海外子公司进行问卷调查。利用社会网络分析方法、结构方程模型和层次回归分析方法,实证检验了所提假设。统计结果显示:(1)海外子公司的东道国网络结构对网络学习效果有显著影响。具体结论为:关系嵌入强度对网络学习效果有显著正向影响;网络中心度对网络学习效果有显著正向影响;群体中心度对网络学习效果有显著正向影响;网络密度对网络学习效果有显著正向影响。(2)海外子公司的东道国网络社会资本对网络学习效果有显著影响。具体结论为:认知资本对网络学习效果有显著正向影响;关系资本对网络学习效果有显著正向影响;位置资本对网络学习效果有显著正向影响;结构资本对网络学习效果有显著正向影响。(3)社会资本在网络结构对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用。具体结论为:位置资本在网络中心度对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用;关系资本在关系嵌入强度对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用;结构资本在网络密度对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用;结构资本在群体中心度对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用;位置资本在关系嵌入强度对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用;关系资本在网络中心度对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用。(4)社会资本内部存在中介关系。具体结论为:认知资本在关系资本对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用;结构资本在关系资本对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用;结构资本在位置资本对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用;关系资本在结构资本对网络学习效果的影响中起中介作用。(5)学习能力调节了网络结构与网络学习效果间的关系。具体结论为:网络密度与网络学习效果间的关系受到学习能力的正向调节;网络中心度与网络学习效果间的关系受到学习能力的负向调节。(6)学习方式调节了网络结构与网络学习效果间的关系。具体结论为:关系嵌入强度与网络学习效果间的关系受到探索型学习的负向调节;网络密度与网络学习效果间的关系受到探索型学习的正向调节;网络密度与网络学习效果间的关系受到利用型学习的正向调节;群体中心度与网络学习效果间的关系受到利用型学习的正向调节。更多还原

【Abstract】 From 1980s, rapid responsiveness and operation in local area have gradually increased the strategic independence of foreign subsidiaries which operate in the frontier of host country. They have gradually transformed from the accepter of parent company to important learner and knowledge contributors. Network has gradually become the important source that creates knowledge, absorbs knowledge and utilizes knowledge of foreign subsidiaries. Network learning is the theme of this paper.Begining from the strategic network structure of foreign subsidiaries; this paper discusses the social capital and network learning of foreign subsidiaries in host country network. Furthermore, this paper selects the host country network which is one of the sub-networks of strategic network and gradually important, and establishes the relation model among network structure, social capital and network learning effectiveness in the host country so as to guide foreign subsidiaries to manage host country network, improve network learning effectiveness and enhance competitive advantage.In the first place, through criticising and succeeding the social embeddedness theory, this paper brings forward three dimensions theory of embeddedness, and develops the host country network theory of foreign subsidiaries.(l) This paper decomposes the strategic network structure of foreign subsidiaries from three dimensions that are relation embeddness, position embeddness and structure embeddness. (2) This paper brings forward the difference of strategic network structure of foreign subsidiaries, and analyzes the reasons from environment stress of parent company, the strategic position of foreign subsidiaries, the resource level and distribution of resource power among network members, and the self-supervising competence of foreign subsidiaries.(3)From the evolving mechanism of serendipity and goal-directedness, this paper analyzes the evolving mechanism and process of strategic network of foreign subsidiaries. And then, this paper discusses the inducement effect that important affairs in industry, the chasing and utilizing of network member to core position, and the change of resource demand act to evolution of strategic network.In the second place, this paper developes the social capital theory of foreign subsidiaries and brings forward following conclusions.(l) Social network contributes to the forming of social capital, but social network is not equal to social capital. Economic network is one of modes forming social network.(2) Social capital is made up of four dimensions which are cognitive capital, relation capital, position capital and structure capital.(3) The economic functions of social capital include value creating and network governance.(5) The social capital of foreign subsidiaries has three sources which are developing from social network, transforming from individual social capital and transferring from social capital of parent company.(5)The forming of strategic network, social network and social capital have close relationship.(6)The establishing, balancing and anti-depreciating of social capital are three important aspects when foreign subsidiaries manage social capital.In the third place, this paper develops the network learning theory of foreign subsidiaries and brings forward following conclusions.(1) Network learning is an economic and social process that inter-actors in network create knowledge, absorb knowledge and utilize knowledge in the network environment and has social characteristic and interacting characteristic.(2) The learning effects of network embody in three aspects including the effects of knowledge share, knowledge diffusion and knowledge overflow.(3)The main bodies of foreign subsidiaries’ network learning can be divided into there levels which are individual, group and organization. Their interaction realizes through feed forward learning and feed back learning.(4)Exploration learning and exploitation learning are two modes of foreign subsidiaries carry out network learning and their relationship are not either this or that but existence in the same time.(5) Network learning is realized through five mechanisms that are knowledge creation, knowledge acquiring, knowledge absorption, knowledge combination and knowledge utilization.(6)Network learning is composed of inter-organization learning and collective learning. (7) The idiographic action of network learning is determined by sixteen roles of foreign subsidiaries in the strategic network.(8) Network learning and inner-organization learning has close relationship and foreign subsidiaries could change between network learning modes and organization learning modes by eight change mechanisms.On the basis of comprehensive review to the theory of strategic network, social capital theory and network learning theory, this paper establishes the relation model among network structure of host country, social capital and network learning effectiveness and brings forward corresponding hypothesis. After measuring the variables, this paper makes a questionnaire on the foreign subsidiaries in China. Using social network method, structure equation model and hierarchical regression analysis, this paper tests all of hypothesis.The statistics outcomes display:(1) Network of foreign subsidiaries have notable influence on network learning effectiveness and idiographic conclusions are as following: the strength of relation embeddedness have notable positive influence on the effectiveness of network learning; degree centrality has notable positive influence on the effectiveness of network learning; group centrality has notable negative influence on the effectiveness of network learning; network density has notable positive influence on the effectiveness of network learning.(2)Social capital of foreign subsidiaries in host country network has notable positive influence on the effectiveness of network learning and idiographic conclusions are as following: cognitive capital has notable positive influence on the effectiveness of network learning; relation capital has notable positive influence on the effectiveness of network learning; position capital has notable positive influence on the effectiveness of network learning;structure capital has notable positive influence on the effectiveness of network learning.(3)Social capital has mediating effect between network structure and effectiveness of network learning.The conclusions are as following:position capital has mediating effect between network core and effectiveness of network learning, relation capital has mediating effect between relation embeddedness strength and effectiveness of network learning, structure capital has mediating effect between network density and effectiveness of network learning, structure capital has mediating effect between crowd core and effectiveness of network learning. Position capital has mediating effect between relation embeddedness strength and effectiveness of network learning. Relation capital has mediating effect between network core and effectiveness of network learning.There are mediating relationship in some dimensions of social capital.The relationship are as following.Cognitive capital has mediating effect between relation capital and effectiveness of network learning and between structure capital and effectiveness of network learning; Structure capital has mediating effect between position capital and effectiveness of network learning, relation capital has mediating effect between structure capital and effectiveness of network learning.(5)Learning competence moderates the relationship between network structure and effectiveness of network learning. The mechanisms are as following: the relationship between network density and network learning effectiveness is moderated positively by learning competence; the relationship between degree centrality and network learning effectiveness is moderated negatively by learning competence.(6)The learning mode moderates the relationship between network structure and network learning effectiveness. The mechanisms are as following: the relationship between relation embeddedness strength and network learning effectiveness is moderated negatively by exploration learning; the relationship between network density and network learning effectiveness is moderated positively by exploration learning; the relationship between network density and network learning effectiveness is moderated positively by exploitation learning; the relationship between group centrality and network learning effectiveness is moderated positively by exploitation learning.更多还原