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The nature, institutional foundations, and issues surrounding the apparent success of Chinese business networks is examined in this book. Major concepts such as guanxi, xinyong and gangqing, exploring the nature of trust, relationships and sentiments in Chinese business networks, are re-examined. A significant amount of literature has been devoted to the study of Chinese business, and it largely falls into two broad schools: the culturalist approach, arguing for an essentialist formulation to explain success and the market approach, suggesting that there is nothing inherently unique about Chinese business. This book critiques both these approaches and argues, based on primary data collected in various countries, and with case studies of a large number of Chinese businesses, that another approach, the institutional embedded approach, provides a better explanation for the success, and failure of Chinese business and Chinese business networks.
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Chee Kiong Tong Editor Chinese Business Rethinking Guanxi and Trust in Chinese Business Networks Chinese Business Chee Kiong Tong Editor Chinese Business Rethinking Guanxi and Trust in Chinese Business Networks Editor Chee Kiong Tong Universiti Brunei Darussalam Bandar Seri Begawan Brunei Darussalam Department of Sociology National University of Singapore Singapore ISBN 978-981-4451-84-0 ISBN 978-981-4451-85-7 (eBook) DOI 10.1007/978-981-4451-85-7 Springer Singapore Heidelberg New York Dordrecht London Library of Congress Control Number: 2014939427 © Springer Science+Business Media Singapore 2014 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. Exempted from this legal reservation are brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis or material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the Copyright Law of the Publisher’s location, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Permissions for use may be obtained through RightsLink at the Copyright Clearance Center. Violations are liable to prosecution under the respective Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) Contents 1 Rethinking Chinese Business ................................................................... Chee Kiong Tong 2 Centripetal Authority, Differentiated Networks: The Social Organization of Chinese Firms in Singapore ...................... Chee Kiong Tong 1 21 3 Guanxi Bases, Xinyong and Chinese Business Networks ....................