IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jbuset/v124y2014i3p383-398.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Corruption, South African Multinational Enterprises and Institutions in Africa

Author

Listed:
  • John Luiz
  • Callum Stewart

Abstract

We examine the responses of South African multinational enterprises (MNEs) to corruption in African markets in the context of institutional voids. Corruption is a source of uncertainty and additional transactional costs for MNEs and it necessitates a strategic response. The research employs a qualitative study of a sample of MNEs with experience in internationalising into Africa. The results indicate that corruption in African markets is pervasive and closely associated with the institutional voids in these countries. MNEs see themselves as ‘institution takers’ responding to countries’ institutional makeup at the organisational and individual level but fail to fully appreciate their impact on institutions both positively and negatively. Rather MNEs focus on strategic responses at the organisational level to address corruption operationally in the host country. We add to the existing literature by providing a dynamic framework of the complex webs of association between institutions, MNEs and corruption in conditions of economic underdevelopment. The research suggests that MNEs do not need to get caught in a vicious cycle whereby they perpetuate corruption in conditions of underdevelopment and institutional voids but instead can contribute towards a virtuous cycle through which they institutionalise ethical foundations. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014

Suggested Citation

  • John Luiz & Callum Stewart, 2014. "Corruption, South African Multinational Enterprises and Institutions in Africa," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 124(3), pages 383-398, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:124:y:2014:i:3:p:383-398
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-013-1878-9
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s10551-013-1878-9
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10551-013-1878-9?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. D. Johnsen, 2009. "The Ethics of “Commercial Bribery”: Integrative Social Contract Theory Meets Transaction Cost Economics," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(4), pages 791-803, October.
    2. Kalle Pajunen, 2008. "Institutions and inflows of foreign direct investment: a fuzzy-set analysis," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 39(4), pages 652-669, June.
    3. Mike W Peng & Denis Y L Wang & Yi Jiang, 2008. "An institution-based view of international business strategy: a focus on emerging economies," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 39(5), pages 920-936, July.
    4. Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro, 2008. "Better the devil you don't know: Types of corruption and FDI in transition economies," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 14(1), pages 12-27, March.
    5. John Cantwell & John H Dunning & Sarianna M Lundan, 2010. "An evolutionary approach to understanding international business activity: The co-evolution of MNEs and the institutional environment," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 41(4), pages 567-586, May.
    6. Celia Moore, 2008. "Moral Disengagement in Processes of Organizational Corruption," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 80(1), pages 129-139, June.
    7. Onyeka Osuji, 2011. "Fluidity of Regulation-CSR Nexus: The Multinational Corporate Corruption Example," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 103(1), pages 31-57, September.
    8. Philip Nichols, 2009. "Multiple Communities and Controlling Corruption," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(4), pages 805-813, October.
    9. Klaus Uhlenbruck & Peter Rodriguez & Jonathan Doh & Lorraine Eden, 2006. "The Impact of Corruption on Entry Strategy: Evidence from Telecommunication Projects in Emerging Economies," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 17(3), pages 402-414, June.
    10. Jakob Svensson, 2005. "Eight Questions about Corruption," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 19(3), pages 19-42, Summer.
    11. Argandoña, Antonio, 2004. "Corruption and companies: The case of facilitating payments," IESE Research Papers D/539, IESE Business School.
    12. Roberto Martin N. Galang, 2012. "Victim or Victimizer: Firm Responses to Government Corruption," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(2), pages 429-462, March.
    13. Luiz, John Manuel & Charalambous, Harris, 2009. "Factors influencing foreign direct investment of South African financial services firms in Sub-Saharan Africa," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(3), pages 305-317, June.
    14. Acemoglu, Daron & Johnson, Simon & Robinson, James A., 2005. "Institutions as a Fundamental Cause of Long-Run Growth," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 6, pages 385-472, Elsevier.
    15. Thomas Hemphill & Waheeda Lillevik, 2011. "The Global Economic Ethic Manifesto: Implementing a Moral Values Foundation in the Multinational Enterprise," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 101(2), pages 213-230, June.
    16. Justin Tan, 2009. "Multinational Corporations and Social Responsibility in Emerging Markets: Opportunities and Challenges for Research and Practice," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 86(2), pages 151-153, March.
    17. Mark Schwartz, 2009. "“Corporate Efforts to Tackle Corruption: An Impossible Task?” The Contribution of Thomas Dunfee," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(4), pages 823-832, October.
    18. Daniel Agbiboa, 2012. "Between Corruption and Development: The Political Economy of State Robbery in Nigeria," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 108(3), pages 325-345, July.
    19. Luiz, John M. & Stephan, Henry, 2012. "The multinationalisation of South African telecommunications firms into Africa," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(8), pages 621-635.
    20. Roland Bardy & Stephen Drew & Tumenta Kennedy, 2012. "Foreign Investment and Ethics: How to Contribute to Social Responsibility by Doing Business in Less-Developed Countries," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 106(3), pages 267-282, March.
    21. Peter Li, 2009. "The Duality of Crony Corruption in Economic Transition: Toward an Integrated Framework," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 85(1), pages 41-55, March.
    22. Kyle Peyton & Ariel R. Belasen, 2012. "Corruption in Emerging and Developing Economies: Evidence from a Pooled Cross-Section," Emerging Markets Finance and Trade, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 48(2), pages 29-43, March.
    23. Djordjija Petkoski & Danielle Warren & William Laufer, 2009. "Collective Strategies in Fighting Corruption: Some Intuitions and Counter Intuitions," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(4), pages 815-822, October.
    24. Aneel Karnani, 2007. "Doing well by doing good—case study: ‘Fair & Lovely’ whitening cream," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(13), pages 1351-1357, December.
    25. John M. Luiz, 2009. "Institutions and economic performance: Implications for African development," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 21(1), pages 58-75.
    26. David Hess, 2009. "Catalyzing Corporate Commitment to Combating Corruption," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 88(4), pages 781-790, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. DeGhetto, Kaitlyn & Lamont, Bruce T. & Holmes, R. Michael, 2020. "Safety risk and international investment decisions," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 55(6).
    2. James Boafo & Sebastian Angzoorokuu Paalo & Senyo Dotsey, 2019. "Illicit Chinese Small-Scale Mining in Ghana: Beyond Institutional Weakness?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(21), pages 1-18, October.
    3. John M. Luiz & Brian Ganson & Achim Wennmann, 2019. "Business environment reforms in fragile and conflict-affected states: From a transactions towards a systems approach," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 2(3), pages 217-236, September.
    4. James Rycroft & John M. Luiz, 2018. "Homelessness, Property Rights, and Institutional Logics," Working Papers 750, Economic Research Southern Africa.
    5. Alice Medioli & Pier Luigi Marchini & Tatiana Mazza, 2024. "The impact of corruption and public governance quality on family firm business strategy," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(1), pages 55-69, January.
    6. Tahiru Azaaviele Liedong, 2021. "Responsible Firm Behaviour in Political Markets: Judging the Ethicality of Corporate Political Activity in Weak Institutional Environments," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 172(2), pages 325-345, August.
    7. Houxue Xia & Qingmei Tan & Junhong Bai, 2018. "Corruption and Technological Innovation in Private Small-Medium Scale Companies: Does Female Top Management Play a Role?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-18, June.
    8. K. Praveen Parboteeah & Matthias Weiss & Martin Hoegl, 2024. "Ethical Climates Across National Contexts: A Meta-Analytical Investigation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 189(3), pages 573-590, January.
    9. Michael A. Sartor & Paul W. Beamish, 2020. "Integration-oriented strategies, host market corruption and the likelihood of foreign subsidiary exit from emerging markets," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 51(3), pages 414-431, April.
    10. Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro & Dieleman, Marleen & Hirsch, Paul & Rodrigues, Suzana B. & Zyglidopoulos, Stelios, 2021. "Multinationals’ misbehavior," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 56(5).
    11. Chris Garbers & Guangling Dave Liu, 2017. "Macroprudential policy and foreign interest rate shocks: A comparison of different instruments and regulatory regimes," Working Papers 719, Economic Research Southern Africa.
    12. Ralph Hamann & Lulamile Makaula & Gina Ziervogel & Clifford Shearing & Alan Zhang, 2020. "Strategic Responses to Grand Challenges: Why and How Corporations Build Community Resilience," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 161(4), pages 835-853, February.
    13. Tahiru Azaaviele Liedong & Jedrzej George Frynas, 2018. "Investment Climate Constraints as Determinants of Political Tie Intensity in Emerging Countries: Evidence from Foreign Firms in Ghana," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 58(5), pages 675-703, October.
    14. Ling Liu & Jose Godinez & John Henley & J. Mauricio Galli Geleilate, 2023. "Corruption distance and the equity-based foreign entry strategies of multinational enterprises in sub-Saharan Africa," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 6(4), pages 492-510, December.
    15. Michael A. Sartor & Paul W. Beamish, 2020. "Private Sector Corruption, Public Sector Corruption and the Organizational Structure of Foreign Subsidiaries," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 167(4), pages 725-744, December.
    16. Jose Godinez & Ling Liu, 2018. "Corruption and Its Effects on FDI: Analysing the Interaction Between the Corruption Levels of the Home and Host Countries and Its Effects at the Decision-Making Level," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 147(4), pages 705-719, February.
    17. Pier Luigi Marchini & Tatiana Mazza & Alice Medioli, 2020. "Corruption and sustainable development: The impact on income shifting in European international groups," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(2), pages 717-730, March.
    18. Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele & Peprah, Augustine Awuah & Amartey, Abednego Okoe & Rajwani, Tazeeb, 2020. "Institutional voids and firms' resource commitment in emerging markets: A review and future research agenda," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(3).
    19. Barnard, Helena & Mamabolo, Anastacia, 2022. "On religion as an institution in international business: Executives’ lived experience in four African countries," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 57(1).
    20. Ifedapo Adeleye & John Luiz & Judy Muthuri & Kenneth Amaeshi, 2020. "Business Ethics in Africa: The Role of Institutional Context, Social Relevance, and Development Challenges," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 161(4), pages 717-729, February.
    21. Helena Barnard & Kenneth Amaeshi & Paul M. Vaaler, 2023. "Theorizing international business in Africa: A roadmap," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 6(4), pages 389-407, December.
    22. Kouznetsov, Alex & Kim, Sarah & Wright, Chris, 2019. "An audit of received international business corruption literature for logic, consistency, completeness of coverage," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 25(4).
    23. Tahiru Azaaviele Liedong & Daniel Aghanya & Tazeeb Rajwani, 2020. "Corporate Political Strategies in Weak Institutional Environments: A Break from Conventions," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 161(4), pages 855-876, February.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Christian Falaster & Manuel Portugal Ferreira & Dan Li, 2021. "The influence of generalized and arbitrary institutional inefficiencies on the ownership decision in cross-border acquisitions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(9), pages 1724-1749, December.
    2. Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro & Dieleman, Marleen & Hirsch, Paul & Rodrigues, Suzana B. & Zyglidopoulos, Stelios, 2021. "Multinationals’ misbehavior," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 56(5).
    3. Donnelly, Róisín & Manolova, Tatiana S., 2020. "Foreign location decisions through an institutional lens: A systematic review and future research agenda," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(4).
    4. Godinez, Jose R. & Liu, Ling, 2015. "Corruption distance and FDI flows into Latin America," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(1), pages 33-42.
    5. Jose Godinez & Ling Liu, 2018. "Corruption and Its Effects on FDI: Analysing the Interaction Between the Corruption Levels of the Home and Host Countries and Its Effects at the Decision-Making Level," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 147(4), pages 705-719, February.
    6. Bahoo, Salman & Alon, Ilan & Paltrinieri, Andrea, 2020. "Corruption in international business: A review and research agenda," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(4).
    7. Yadong Luo & Huan Zhang & Juan Bu, 2019. "Developed country MNEs investing in developing economies: Progress and prospect," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 50(4), pages 633-667, June.
    8. Onyeka Osuji, 2011. "Fluidity of Regulation-CSR Nexus: The Multinational Corporate Corruption Example," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 103(1), pages 31-57, September.
    9. Boddewyn, Jean J. & Peng, Mike W., 2021. "Reciprocity and informal institutions in international market entry," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 56(1).
    10. Vanessa da Silva Mariotto Onody & Ana Catarina Gandra de Carvalho & Eduardo Polloni-Silva & Guilherme Augusto Roiz & Enzo Barberio Mariano & Daisy Aparecida Nascimento Rebelatto & Herick Fernando Mora, 2022. "Corruption and FDI in Brazil: Contesting the “Sand” or “Grease” Hypotheses," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-18, May.
    11. Tao, Fang & Liu, Xiaohui & Gao, Lan & Xia, Enjun, 2017. "Do cross-border mergers and acquisitions increase short-term market performance? The case of Chinese firms," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(1), pages 189-202.
    12. Sarianna M. Lundan & Jiatao Li, 2019. "Adjusting to and learning from institutional diversity: Toward a capability-building perspective," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 50(1), pages 36-47, February.
    13. Chidlow, Agnieszka & Wang, Jue & Liu, Xiaohui & Wei, Yingqi, 2021. "A co-evolution perspective of EMNE internationalization and institutions: An integrative framework of 5Cs," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(4).
    14. Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele & Peprah, Augustine Awuah & Amartey, Abednego Okoe & Rajwani, Tazeeb, 2020. "Institutional voids and firms' resource commitment in emerging markets: A review and future research agenda," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(3).
    15. Imtiaz Arif & Lubna Khan & Sundus Waqar, 2023. "Does Corruption Sand or Grease the Wheels? A Case of BRICS Countries," Global Business Review, International Management Institute, vol. 24(6), pages 1468-1481, December.
    16. Qi, Guoyou & Zou, Hailiang & Xie, Xuemei & Meng, Xiaohua & Fan, Tijun & Cao, Yuanhe, 2020. "Obedience or escape: Examining the contingency influences of corruption on firm exports," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 261-272.
    17. Fon, Roger Mongong & Filippaios, Fragkiskos & Stoian, Carmen & Lee, Soo Hee, 2021. "Does foreign direct investment promote institutional development in Africa?," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(4).
    18. Bertrand Venard, 2013. "Institutions, Corruption and Sustainable Development," Post-Print hal-00874275, HAL.
    19. Dawn L. Keig & Lance Eliot Brouthers & Victor B. Marshall, 2015. "Formal and Informal Corruption Environments and Multinational Enterprise Social Irresponsibility," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(1), pages 89-116, January.
    20. Chengguang Li & Jeffrey J. Reuer, 2022. "The impact of corruption on market reactions to international strategic alliances," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 53(1), pages 187-202, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:124:y:2014:i:3:p:383-398. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.