Level of Economic Development
Often the most salient mechanisms of conflict are magnified in importance when the partners come from differing economically developed contexts. Not only do differences of value (e.g., perceptions and/or realities of the worth or value of the contribution made by the partners) change over time, but the types of perceptions depend on level of national economic development.
Tensions may arise from differential technology utilization and purchasing (e.g., the joint venture least developed country [LDC] partner may be obliged to purchase all or a very significant part of its technology from the MNC). Other points of conflict reflect export rights (e.g., MNCs may not want the joint venture partner to export into their own markets, whereas these rights may be the main reason for LDC partner to enter into the joint venture), tax issues (e.g., MNCs may attempt to show less profit in the joint venture if taxes in the home/domestic country are high), investment policies (e.g., MNCs may wish to reinvest in the joint venture itself), and ownership and control problems (e.g., initial contract may involve sourcing from the MNC partner) (for more detail, see Chowdhury & Chowdhury, 2001).The pervasiveness of these features can help explain why global interorganizational partnerships are fraught with difficulty and potential conflict (Mehta, Anderson, Dubinsky, Polsa, & Mazur, 2010). Just as several researchers say it is in the nature of multicultural teams for conflict to arise, Schoenberg, Denuelle, and Norburn (1995) go so far as to say that in cross-national partnerships, “the potential for conflict may well be inherent” (p. 8).