A dyadic study of mutuality in exporter-importer relationships

Abstract

Relationship marketing has been playing an important role in the development of marketing theory and practice. Though the concept has been extensively applied in international marketing in understanding the dynamics of exporter-importer relationships, few studies have looked at dyadic data to investigate the impact of mutuality of relational variables on the exporter-importer relationships. The objective of this study is to understand the impact of mutuality of key relational variables on exporter-importer relationship performance. More specifically, the objective is to assess the relative impact of discrepancies in partner's perceptions of relational antecedents (e.g., trust, relationship commitment, communication effectiveness etc.) on exporter-importer relationship performance. In addition, the study seeks to understand the key dimensions of two key relational variables, namely trust and commitment in exporter-importer relationships. Grounded in resource dependence and relational exchange theories, a dyadic model of mutuality is proposed. The model focuses on the key relational variables of exporterimporter relationships namely commitment, trust, dependence, communication, cultural sensitivity and likability of partner and their impact on relationship performance. Importantly, the model highlights the impact of balance, level and quality of perceptual bidirectionality of relational variables. The model was tested using dyadic data collected from a larger study of international business relationships involving Australian firms and their Southeast Asian partners through a cross-sectional, quantitative survey conducted amongst Australian export marketing managers and their corresponding Thai import partners. The results support the central hypothesis that mutuality of relationship constructs has an impact on relationship performance. Though not all hypotheses in the proposed model were supported, the results suggest that mutual affective commitment has an impact on exporter-importer relationship performance. Mutual affective commitment in turn is influenced by mutual goodwill trust and mutual dependence in the relationship. The results also suggest that mutuality of interpersonal factors such as communication, likability of partners and cultural sensitivity have an impact on mutual goodwill trust. The results have practical significance for the way, which export-import partners should approach to form and manage successful relationships. The critical theoretical contribution from this study is the identification of the balance, level and quality of perceptual bidirectionality of relational variables in exporter-importer relationships and their impact on performance.

Date of Award	2017
Original language	English