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Abstract
This thesis seeks to broaden our understanding of the nature, causes and
consequences of firms' internationalisation. A comprehensive review and
assessment of previous research is presented, including a discussion of
various models of the internationalisation process.
A simple analytical framework is presented for studying the dimensions of
internationalisation and its possible causes and effects. A number of
hypotheses are developed which focus on the relationships between various
management and firm factors and both the behavioural and attitudinal
dimensions of manufacturing firms' internationalisation. The influence of
various contextual factors (i.e. firm size, foreign ownership, and firm age)
on some of these relationships is then investigated. Next, the
multidimensional nature of internationalisation is explored. A number of
underlying dimensions of internationalisation are identified which form the
basis for developing homogeneous groups of exporting and non-exporting
firms. Lastly, profiles of these groups of firms are developed in terms of
various management and firm characteristics.
The empirical analysis uses data generated from a nationwide sample of
Australian manufacturing firms. The hypotheses advanced are tested using
five different measures of internationalisation. In general, the results of
the bivariate analysis tend to support the posited hypotheses for all
measures except export volume, for which inconsistent results emerge.
Further analysis reveals the importance of firm size and foreign ownership
as important contextual influences on the relationships between
explanatory variables and firms' internationalisation.
The exploratory analysis of the multidimensional nature of internationalisation
suggests various underlying dimensions of internationalisation.
It also results in potentially useful classifications of
exporters and non-exporters which have reasonably distinctive profiles.
These classifications of firms provide possible bases for targeting and
designing export assistance schemes.
Finally, the limitations of the research are considered and directions for
future research outlined.