The behaviour of international firms in socio-political environments in the European Union

Most of the earlier studies on international business ignore the influence of the political actors and the environment on the internationalisation of the firm. The focus of this study is on the interaction between business an d political actors and the main question deals with how firms standing in d ifferent stages of their internationalisation manage their relationships wi th political actors. By using network theory. the study presents a conceptu al framework and aims to augment the knowledge on the internationalisation of the firms' political activities. The variety in management actions are d iscussed by the two variables of influence and adaptation, which have becom e connected to the two fundamental variables in internationalisation of the firms, namely commitment and knowledge. By comparing the management behavi our of seven small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and three multinati onals (MNEs), the study shows how smaller exporting firms vs. MNEs manage t heir relationships with political actors. The outcome of the analysis conta ins results elevating general aspects on the political behaviour of the fir ms in the European market. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserv ed.