外文翻译
原文
The Internationalization of Small and Medium-Sized Firms
Material Source: Small Business Economics Author: Dirk De Clercq ABSTRACT: This paper contributes to the existing researchby integrating the notions of organizational learning and entrepreneurial orientation into the body of international entrepreneurship. Our primary framework combines learning theory and the new venture theory of internationalization to study the extent to which small and medium-sized companies engage in international activities. We found that the firms' international learning effort and entrepreneurial orientation are positively associated with internationalization intent whereas domestic learning effort is negatively related with internationalization intent. Overall, our results suggest (1) that intensive knowledge renewal and exploitation regarding foreign markets and the internationalization process itself may increase internationalization by affecting the perceptions ofopportunities offered by further international expansion, and(2) that firms with an entrepreneurial mindset may be more likely to develop along-term, substantial presence in the international arena, compared to firms that are more reactive or conservative.
1 .Introduction
Previous researchers have examined why firms internationalize and at what pace they engage in cross-border activities (Berra et al., 1994; Caloff and Viviers, 1995; Crick et al., 2001; Johanson and Vahlne, 1977; Johanson and Vahlne, 1990). Also, prior research has examined the impact of learning--oriented factors in explaining a firm's commitment to international activities (Ogbuehi and Longfellow, 1994; Autio et al., 2000; Burpitt and Rondinelli, 2000). For instance, Burpitt and Rondinelli (2000) found that firms may be more likely to increase their exporting activities when they consider the amount of learning resulting from international activities as being highly valuable. In this study, we partly rely on the behavioral view of the firm to further examine learning-based antecedents of a firm's internationalization intent (Cyert and March, 1963).
The behavioral view of internationalization focuses on the impact of international experience on the pace and direction of subsequent internationalization (Johanson and Vahlne, 1977). An important theme in the behavioral view is the role of organizational knowledge in the internationalization process. In this study we use organizational learning theory for examining a firm's propensity to invest in future cross-border activities (Cohen and Levinthal, 1990; Autio et al., 2000). Whereas prior research has often operationalized a firm's degree of internationalization as its level of export (for example, Campbel
l, 1996; Crick et al., 2001), we define "internationalization intent" as a firm's propensity to expand its cross-border activities in terms of the intensity (for example, level of export) and the scope (for example, number of countries to which the firm exports) of such activides. One contribution of our study lies in our creating a measure for organizational learning effort as an antecedent of internationalization intent. We define organizational learning effort as activities aimed at exploiting existing knowledge and exploring new knowledge with regard to domestic and foreign markets.
Some researchers have criticized the behavioral view for over-emphasizing the impact of organizational experience on internationalization efforts (Aharoni, 1966). That is, it has been argued that Johanson and Vahlne's framework does not explain why some firms engage in cross-border activities early on or why they proceed rapidly once first internationalization has taken place. For instance, McDougall et al. (1994) argued that firms may internationalize early because a top management team with previous international experience may be willing and able to pursue new combinations of key resources across national borders early on in the firm's existence. In short, some researchers have recognized more explicitly the role of a firm's strategic choice and entrepreneurial character in the decision to enter the international arena (Child, 1972; McDougall and Oviatt, 2000). This recent stream of research, the new venture theory of internationalization, examines how compete
ncies influence a firm's strategic choice to engage in cross-border activities (McDougall, 1989; McDougall and Oviatt, 2000).
Our primary framework combines learning theory, with its roots in the behavioral theory of the firm, and the new venture theory of internationalization (Cyert and March, 1963; Cohen and Levinthal, 1990; McDougall and Oviatt, 2000). First, we look explicitly at how knowledge development and renewal with regard to foreign and domestic activities may have an impact on perceptions about the opportunities offered by further internationalization. Second, we examine the
reactive翻译effect of entrepreneurial orientation on a firm's internationalization intent. We draw our analysis on small Belgian firms that have engaged in cross-border activity. As with prior research on firm internationalization in small European countries (Johanson and Vahlne, 1977; Autio et al., 2000), Belgium provides an interesting setting in which to examine internationalization in that cross-border activity is often    a necessity given the limited domestic market size, yet many firms still avoid starting or expanding international activities for a significant period of time (Eriksson et al. 1997; Autio et al., 2000).
As mentioned earlier, the behavioral theory of internationalization assumes that international expansio
n can be described as a process in which the firm goes through incremental steps that reduce the uncertainty embedded in cross-border activity (Aharoni, 1966; Prasad, 1999). Basing their arguments on the experience of Swedish companies, Johanson and Vahlne (1977, 1990) explained both the pace and direction of subsequent international activities. For instance, they argued that a firm might change gradually the nature of its activities within a foreign country, that is, from only export to fully-owned overseas production investments, as well as across countries by expanding over time to countries that are more physically and culturally distant. Similarly, Calof and Viviers (1995) found that Canadian and South African firms preferred to gradually learn about the international arena by entering first markets that are perceived to be less risky-that is, being geographically and culturally close to the domestic market-before entering "more risky" distant markets. In short, the behavioral approach towards internationalization focuses on    a firm's gradually increasing international involvement through a series of incremental steps. An important driver for increasing international commitment is the development of knowledge relevant to foreign markets. In this study we argue that prior research in organizational learning theory may provide a good framework for explaining in detail how activities aimed at knowledge development and renewal may foster cross-border activity.
We posit that organizational learning effort pertains to activities aimed at both building on existing kno
wledge and developing new knowledge (Cohen and Levinthal, 1990). This description of learning effort is consistent with prior research that argued that organizational learning includes two modes, that is, exploitation and exploration (Levinthal and March, 1993). Exploration involves the search for new knowledge, skills and processes, whereas exploitation involves the incremental improvement of existing knowledge, skills and processes. Levinthal
and March (1993) indicated that exploitation by itself may not be sufficient in the long run to maintain a competitive advantage, since the environment in which an organization operates changes over time. Therefore, we conceptualize organizational learning effort as the extent of effort to both exploit existing knowledge and to explore for new knowledge. Such effort may be aimed at learning inside home country borders (that is, domestic learning effort) or outside these borders (that is, international learning effort).
The sample in our study was drawn from    a database maintained by the Center of Entrepreneurship at the Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School in Belgium. The sample includes firms that are independent (that is, they are not subunits of a large organization) and owner-managed. We considered only firms with fewer than 500 employees to be included in the study, a figure consistent with Seringaus (1993) and Moini (1995) for the definition of small and medium-sized enterprises. In the
Spring of 2000, we collected the data based on surveys mailed to the owners or top executives of 500 firms randomly selected from the database; we received 92 completed surveys, which repre-Bents a response rate of 18070 (the survey items appear in the Appendix). In order to test for possible non-response bias, early respondents were compared with late respondents, as it has been suggested that late respondents, especially after follow-up, may be relatively similar to non-respondents (Armstrong and Overton, 1977; Churchill, 1991). We found no statistically Big-nificant differences between early and late respondents for the variables under study. In addition to the survey data, we also undertook exploratory interviews with some of the respondents in order to facilitate the interpretation of the quantitative results (see discussion section). Finally, we also collected sales data for 1999 from a database maintained by the National Bank of Belgium.
The positive relationship between international learning effort and internationalization intent indiGates that efforts aimed explicitly at knowledge renewal and exploitation with regard to specific foreign markets and the internationalization process in general increase the propensity to expand cross-border activities. As mentioned earlier, the rationale for this positive relationship may lie in the role of foreign knowledge in diminfishing the uncertainty embedded in international expansion, or in increasing the willingness to leverage this knowledge in additional cross-border activities. The quantitative support for
this relationship was also confirmed by the exploratory interviews with some of the sampled firms. For instance, Sarens, a firm active in renting and selling movable
cranes for the construction sector, had developed deep organizational knowledge with regard to safety regulations and planning of construction projects in countries that were geographically close to the domestic market. This knowledge motivated the firm, then, in further competing for large-scale projects worldwide; that is, even for unknown distant countries, the firm's top management believed that the specific knowledge of individual workers and the organizational know一how was strong enough to bring such projects to a successful end.
The results of this study may clarify the factors leading to or inhibiting additional international activity among small firms in an economy with limited domestic opportunities for growth. Our results suggest that intensive knowledge renewal and exploitation regarding foreign markets and the internationalization process itself may increase internationalization by affecting the perceptions of opportunities offered by further international expansion. Also, firms that engage in radical innovation, undertake bold, aggressive actions, or are willing to assume risks, may be more likely to develop a long-term, substantial presence in the international arena, compared to firms that are more reactive or conservative. Finally, our results suggest that international and domestic learning activities are comple
mentary: they tend to covary, and they tend to be related in the same ways with entrepreneurial orientation; however, our results also suggest that firms that invest in domestic learning activities, as opposed to international learning activities, may be less likely to internationalize further; this may ultimately hamper firm success in the long term.
译文
中小企业的国际化
资料来源: Small Business Economics 作者：Dirk De Clercq 摘要：本文通过整合组织学习的概念和企业进入国际市场的创业导向，有助于对现有研究的贡献。我们的主要框架是结合学习理论和中小企业在国际活动中的新的企业理论。我们发现，公司努力学习国际化并且其创业导向很积极与国际化的意图有着很大的关系，而国内相关的学习与国际化的意图是负相关。

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