Toward comprehensive model of international joint venture learning. Based on alliance learning, absorptive capacity, and trust literature, this study proposed a comprehensive model linking International Joint Venture (IJV) learning and its determinants. The model takes into account the multi dimensionality of absorptive capacity and trust which were often omitted in previous studies. | Journal of Economics and Development, , , April 2017, pp. 51-64 ISSN 1859 0020 Toward A Comprehensive Model of International Joint Venture Learning Phan Thi Thuc Anh National Economics University, Vietnam Email: ptanh@ Abstract Based on alliance learning, absorptive capacity, and trust literature, this study proposed a comprehensive model linking International Joint Venture (IJV) learning and its determinants. The model takes into account the multi-dimensionality of absorptive capacity and trust which were often omitted in previous studies. It is then tested in the context of Vietnam on the basis of data collected from 154 IJVs. The result confirms the comprehensiveness of the model as it explains more than 63% of the variance in learning. Specifically, learning intent, three out of four dimensions of absorptive capacity, and foreign parents’ willingness to share knowledge were found to be positively associated with IJV learning, Trust dimensions were also related to learning but these relationships were alleviated in the presence of the other determinants. The research contributes to the growing literature on IJV learning and provides important implications for managers working in IJVs. Keywords: International joint venture; learning; absorptive capacity; trust. Journal of Economics and Development 51 Vol. 19, , April 2017 1. Introduction of the knowledge being acquired and the IJV’s cognitive capabilities. The IJV’s cognitive capabilities are linked closely to the absorptive capacity concept proposed by Cohen and Levinthal (1990). Other researchers (. Dhanaraj, Lyles, Steensma and Tihanyi, 2004; Inkpen and Currall, 2004) look at the phenomenon from the social perspective with a particular emphasis on the relationship/trust between the two sides. As noted by Kogut (in Grandori and Kogut, 2002), knowledge transfer is embedded not only in the capabilities but also the social relationships between both sides of transactions. .
