The Mechanism of How Local Multinational Enterprises’ Innovation Ecological Network Positional Relationship Influences Innovation Niche-fitness

Abstract

Abstract: Based on the “ecosystem-as-affiliation” view and knowledge-based theory, this study explores the mechanism and contingent factors of innovation ecological network positional relationship of local multinational enterprises influencing their innovation niche-fitness, and uses the balanced panel data composed of 1,160 observations from 116 Chinese local listed multinational enterprises in the electronic equipment manufacturing industry from 2011 to 2020 to empirically test the conceptual model. The results show that: within the innovation ecosystem of local multinational enterprises, (1) the homophilous-position relationship and heterophilous-position relationship of local multinational enterprises’ innovation ecological network have significant positive effects on innovation niche-fitness, but heterophilous-position relationship improves innovation niche-fitness more significantly than homophilous-position relationship; (2) R&D internationalization plays a mediating role in the relationship between the two dimensions of innovation ecological network positional relationship and innovation niche-fitness; (3) the breadth and depth of knowledge search negatively moderate the relationship between the homophilous-position relationship of innovation ecological network and innovation niche-fitness, but positively moderate the relationship between the heterophilous-position relationship and innovation niche-fitness; and (4) innovation novelty plays a negative moderating role in the mediating path of “heterophilous-position relationship-R&D internationalization-innovation niche-fitness”. This study not only enriches the theoretical framework of innovation ecosystem and its application in multinational enterprises research; but also provides theoretical recommendations for local multinational enterprises to enhance their innovation abilities by leveraging innovation ecosystem more efficiently.

Key words: multinational enterprises, innovation ecosystem, network positional relationship, R&D internationalization, niche-fitness

Xie Xuemei, Liu Xiaojie. The Mechanism of How Local Multinational Enterprises’ Innovation Ecological Network Positional Relationship Influences Innovation Niche-fitness[J]. Management Review, 2025, 37(12): 106-120.

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