Merchant guild culture and strategic choices: a subnational perspective
研究中国16世纪以来的商人行会文化如何影响当代企业国内战略，发现行会遗产越强，企业越不倾向国内市场导向战略，且该效应受历史冲击和社会传播调节。
Cultural studies often implicitly assume national cultures are homogeneous and ahistorical, overlooking whether and under what sociohistorical conditions subnational cultures affect local firms’ domestic strategies. Drawing on the institution-based view and historical institutionalism, this study theorizes that Chinese merchant guild culture—a regional heritage originating in the 16th century—continues to affect domestic strategies. We propose that historical disruptions in subnational regions weakened the impact of merchant guild heritage. In contrast, social transmissions in subnational regions help strengthen cultural heritage. Based on historical datasets, empirical findings verify that stronger guild heritage is associated with a lower tendency to adopt domestic market-oriented strategies. This relationship is weaker in subnational regions that faced severe historical disruptions but stronger in regions where social transmissions remain prevalent. Overall, this study reveals the enduring yet conditional impact of subnational cultures on local firms’ domestic strategies.