Responsible cronyism in transition: understanding changing attitudes to business corruption in Myanmar

ABSTRACT

Existing research on corruption in Asian business has focused on issues of causation, manifestation and impact, but with little attention paid to how corrupt practices evolve over time. Despite two decades of empirical evidence of changing work values among Asian managers, we know little as to how, why and to what extent this affects their corollary attitudes and behaviours towards corruption. Focusing on ‘responsible’ cronyism – as indicative of pressures to adapt current crony practices – we pursue an interview-based investigation in the emerging economy of Myanmar. Findings uncovered significant heterogeneity in participant perspectives towards responsible cronyism, seen variously as a West-East hybrid progression, a reversion to traditional Burmese values and an instrumental negotiation tool. Implications for how we understand changing attitudes to corruption in Myanmar (and emerging Asia) for both theory and practice, along with future research directions are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Corruption
• crossvergence
• indigenous culture constructs
• Myanmar
• responsible cronyism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Tim G. Andrews

Tim G. Andrews is a Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Business Administration, Chiang Mai University, Thailand and a Visiting Senior Fellow at the Saw Swee Hock Southeast Asia Centre, London School of Economics. He has published in journals such as the Journal of International Business Studies, Management International Review and the Asia Pacific Journal of Management. He is Series Editor for the Working in Asia book collection and the co-author of the recent book Building Brands in Asia (Routledge, 2017).

Khongphu Nimanandh

Khongphu Nimanandh is Assistant Professor and Associate Dean at the Faculty of Business Administration, Chiang Mai University. His research interests include SME internationalization, risk and leadership and the influence of Thai cultural values on organizational management practice.

Khin Thi Htun

Khin Thi Htun is a member of the Myanmar Women Entrepreneurs Association (MWEA) in Yangon. Her research interests focus on the role of women in a changing Burma, indigenous culture and business networks, religion and spirituality and the experiences of base-of-the-pyramid employees in Burmese organizations working abroad.

Saranya Kantabutra

Saranya Kantabutra is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Business Administration, Chiang Mai University. Her research interests are international business, cross-cultural management and tourism management.