Director networks, Absorptive capacity, and Internationalization Scope

Against the backdrop of China's economic transformation, the director network—as a manifestation of informal institutions and a vehicle for social capital—serves as a crucial channel for firms to access external resources, thereby facilitating successful overseas market expansion. A firm's position within director networks reflects its network power, which influences the scope of corporate internationalization through resource integration and knowledge absorption effects. This study employs social network analysis methodology, utilizing data from Chinese A-share listed companies from 2012 to 2022, to empirically examine the influence mechanism of a firm's director network position on its internationalization scope and to explore the mediating role of absorptive capacity in this relationship. The findings reveal that the network centrality positively promotes the internationalization scope, while structural holes negatively affect it. Absorptive capacity partially mediates the relationship between director network position and its internationalization scope. This study expands the research on director networks and corporate internationalization, offering insights for Chinese enterprises in network construction and the pursuit of international expansion.