Competence relatedness, asset specificity and vertical integration : an integrating model of transaction cost economics and the competence perspective

摘要

This study develops a conceptual model that explains vertical integration as a synthesis oftransaction costs economics and the competence perspective. It is proposed that variablesderived from these two perspectives are complementary and interact in the vertical integrationdecision. The underlying behavioral assumptions in the two perspectives are examined anddiscussed. The assumptions of opportunism and bounded rationality as used in the TCE-framework are respecified and based on a synthesis of transaction cost economics,evolutionary economics and the resource-based perspective.The model developed was empirically tested on a sample of Norwegian hydroelectric powerstations industry. The results from the test show that the concepts derived from the twoperspectives have substantial impact on the vertical integration decision. Consequently, thesynthesis provides a much more powerful framework for explaining vertical integration, thanthe two perspectives may contribute in isolation. Accordingly, the two perspectives should beintegrated into a unified framework sharing the same set of assumptions. Transaction costeconomics and the competence perspective are not, as previously argued, in conflict, but arecomplementary. In the last part of the dissertation theoretical and managerial implications arepresented and discussed, and suggestions for future research are provided.