Informal Networks: Dark Sides, Bright Sides, and Unexplored Dimensions. (July 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Horak, Sven; Afiouni, Fida; Bian, Yanjie; Ledeneva, Alena; Muratbekova-Touron, Maral; Fey, Carl F.
• Is Part Of: Management and organization review. Volume 16:Number 3(2020)
• Page Start: 511
• Page End: 542
• Publication Date: 2020-07
• Subjects: blat/svyazi, -- dark side/bright side debate, -- functional ambivalence, -- guanxi, -- informal institutions, -- informal networks, -- moral ambiguity, -- networking social capital, -- wasta, -- yongo; blat/svyazi, -- 阴暗面/光明面争论, -- 功能矛盾性, -- guanxi, -- 非正式制度, -- 非正式网络, -- 道德模糊, -- 网络社会资本, -- wasta, -- yongo; блат/связи, -- дискуссия о темной стороне/светлой стороне, -- функциональная амбивалентность, -- guanxi, -- неформальные институты, -- неформальные связи, -- моральная неопределенность, -- социальный капитал сетевых связей, -- wasta, -- yongo; blat/svyazi, -- debate lado oscuro/iluminado, -- ambivalencia funcional, -- guanxi, -- instituciones informales, -- redess informales, -- ambigüedad moral, -- capital social de relacionamiento, -- wasta, -- yongo; Management -- China -- Periodicals; Industrial management -- China -- Periodicals; International business enterprises -- Management -- Periodicals; Management -- Periodicals; Organizational sociology -- Periodicals; 658.00951
• DOI: 10.1017/mor.2020.28
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1740-8776

Abstract

Abstract: Informal networking can be seen as a positive activity with beneficial outcomes for individuals, firms, and society as a whole, but informal networking can also lead to collusion, cliques, nepotism, and other forms of unethical or corrupt conduct – largely related to research on emerging markets. To date, the construction of informal networks and their cultural intertwinement and development have not been a focus of international management and organization studies, a gap that this special issue seeks to address. This special issue contributes to a better understanding of the dynamics of informal networks and their ambivalence, in which the same networks have different modes of operation and have positive and negative sides intermittently or simultaneously. We demonstrate the context in which informal networks operate, highlight their complexity, and encourage dialogue among scholars studying informal networks in a variety of countries. Using a context-based and comparative perspective allows us to conceptualize informal networks in a more integrated and balanced way. Understanding the workings of informal networking – known variously as guanxi, yongo, jentinho, wasta, and blat – in culturally specific settings, places Western values, social structures, and ideals of behavior in perspective and tests Western-centered assumptions, narratives, and theories. Because informal networking is a conventional way of conducting business in many countries, as depicted in this special issue, defining the bright (positive) and the dark (negative) sides of informal networks is critical for responsible management and business success at multinational corporations.