Title:	Managers’ Perception of Risk as a Driver for Firm Strategies in Global Production Networks — The Case of Turkish-German Direct Investments
Authors:	Völlers, Philip Henrik
ORCID of the author:	https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1545-5804
Thesis advisor:	Prof. Dr. Franz, Martin
Thesis referee:	Prof. Dr. Dannenberg, Peter
Abstract:	The thesis aims to highlight the importance of actor-based risk perception as a starting point for analyzing dynamic processes within global production networks. Based on a relational economic geography premise, this research is inspired by the Global Production Networks (GPN) Approach 2.0 and supplemented by further insights from human geography, sociology, psychology, and international business literature. Derived from this interdisciplinary perspective, the findings of this thesis illustrate the potential of a spatial-relational understanding of risk to render related processes analytically comprehensible. The empirical analysis is based on two explorative case studies focusing on the Turkish-German investment context. The qualitative data consists of 69 semi-structured interviews conducted with firm managers and experts in both countries. In addition, quantitative data from 147 computer-assisted telephone interviews with managers of German firms in Turkey are used. The results of the case studies illustrate how the embeddedness context of firm managers influences their risk perception and the corresponding risk mitigation strategies at the firm level. The case study of German firms in Turkey shows that a high level of embeddedness in the host country influences the managers’ risk perception and enables firms to use formal and informal institutions to mitigate risk. The findings of the case study of Turkish firms in Germany illustrate how risk associated with the institutional environment of the home country influences the perception and strategic response of expatriate managers in the host country. By strategically emphasizing their embeddedness in the host country—for example, by mimicking the societal embeddedness of German firms—these firms distance themselves from corresponding risk narratives. Both case studies highlight the potentially adverse effects of firms’ embeddedness in different (transnational) institutional environments. The theoretical insights gained are summarized in a proposal for revisiting the concept of risk in the GPN 2.0 approach. A multi-scalar framework is developed based on a performative risk narrative perspective. This framework aims to provide a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms and processes that render risks causally relevant for global network dynamics. Overall, the thesis contributes to the empirical and theoretical development of geographically informed risk analyses on cross-border socio-economic processes and uneven developments in the globalized economy. This research highlights the significance of reframing the conceptual understanding of risk towards debates emphasizing spatial-relational aspects and adopting context-sensitive, actor-based approaches in researching related empirical phenomena. In this sense, the knowledge gained adds to economic-geographical research on risk as a dynamic driver of globalization processes.
URL:	https://doi.org/10.48693/557 https://osnadocs.ub.uni-osnabrueck.de/handle/ds-2024070211323
Subject Keywords:	Foreign Direct Investments; Turkey; Germany; Global Production Networks; GPN 2.0; Risk; Risk Perception; Embeddedness; Firm Strategies; Performative Risk Narrative
Issue Date:	2-Jul-2024
License name:	Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Germany
License url:	http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/de/
Type of publication:	Dissertation oder Habilitation [doctoralThesis]
Appears in Collections:	FB01 - E-Dissertationen

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