SOAS Research Online

Abstract

This paper suggests a cross-country comparative framework for the study of inter-organizational relationships. It provides a perspective that links the micro-, meso- and macro-levels of analysis, dealing with the following issues: (a) the role of socio-organizational factors in relationships across organizational boundaries; (b) legal contractual arrangements, human capital features, and the practices of using information and communication technologies as key factors in the environment in which inter-organizational relationships are embedded; and (c) convergence versus divergence of cultural and institutional patterns of national business systems. Also, the effects of governance regime (Anglo-Saxon vis-à-vis Continental-European) and population size (large vis-à-vis small) are argued to play an important role in determining the quality of inter-organizational relationships across Western European national business systems. The conceptual argument presented in this article is illustrated by reference to Germany, the UK, The Netherlands and Ireland.