Using a sample of A-share listed companies from the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges from 2010 to 2020, this study examines the impact of membership in non-local chambers of commerce (NLCCs) on corporate innovation, considering the dual attributes of business culture and social networks associated with these chambers. The research finds that joining a NLCC significantly promotes corporate innovation. Agency costs play a partial mediating role between membership in NLCCs and corporate innovation, with a chain mediation path of “NLCC—social capital—agency costs—corporate innovation.” Further analysis reveals that the more NLCCs there are in a company's location, the greater the positive impact of joining one on corporate innovation. The promotion effect of joining a NLCC on corporate innovation is stronger for state-owned enterprises (SOEs) compared to non-state-owned enterprises (non-SOEs). In addition, membership in NLCCs fosters both invention and non-invention innovation.
Influenced by Confucian relationalism, Chinese organizations exhibit a Yuanfen-Guanxi orientation, forming a “Yuanfen circle-based” organizational identification. This stands in stark contrast to the scatter-point organizational identification grounded in the Western individualism. Using a speculative research method, this study probes into the ideological connotations and cultural foundations of View of Confucian Yuanfen (hereinafter referred to as the View). It deeply explores the intrinsic link between Yuanfen relationship and organizational identification, thereby investigating the mechanisms by which organizational identification is generated in Chinese enterprises as influenced by the View. The findings reveal that within the Confucian cultural context, the intra-organizational relationship manifests as a “Yuanfen circle-based” structure, progressively advancing through “occupational connection-emotional connection-kinship connection” layers. This structure significantly influences organizational identification across cognitive, emotional, and behavioral dimensions. Moreover, a triadic, synergistically driven mechanism of organizational identification in Chinese enterprises is identified, comprising emotional cohesion, ethical edification, and institutional norms. This mechanism enhances organizational identification and human resource management in Chinese enterprises, as well as their self-organizing capabilities in uncertain environments.
Based on data from China’s A-share listed companies from 2008 to 2017, this paper examines the influence of the contemporary values of Confucianism, namely benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and fidelity on the effectiveness of internal control. It indicates a significant positive correlation between the contemporary values of Confucianism and the effectiveness of internal control. Furthermore, this positive influence is noticeable in family-owned businesses but is unobserved in foreign-invested enterprises in China. In addition, the contemporary values of Confucianism enhance internal control quality through two pathways: promotion incentives and corporate reputation. In regions with lower degrees of openness, lower levels of rule of law and slower marketization, or in companies facing operational crises, the contemporary values of Confucianism have a more pronounced effect on enhancing the effectiveness of internal control. The contemporary values of Confucianism have strengthened the ability of internal control to decrease agency costs and mitigate the negative influence of internal control on risk-taking.