International expansion of family firms: An integrative framework using taiwanese manufacturers

Globalization and acceleration of technology diffusion has propelled the traditional family firms to undertake international expansion. However, the determinants of FDI and its relationship to firm performance for traditional family firms remains largely understudied in international business research. This paper attempts to test a set of existing theoretical constructs based on an integrative framework of internalization perspective, resource-based perspective, institution-based perspective and marketing signaling theory. Our empirical findings using data from 276 businesses not only confirm the relevancy of existing theories to explain the international expansion of family firms but also capture the mediating effects of FDI on firm performance which are not previously reported in current literature.