Distance in International Business: Concept, Cost and Value

Distance is a central theme in international business (IB) research. A simple search for the word “distance” in the abstracts and titles of papers published in five leading IB journals over the period 1990–2015 illustrates the importance of the topic: overall, 341 papers have addressed the phenomenon, either in their titles or abstracts (International Business Review – IBR: 89, Journal of International Business Studies – JIBS: 99, Journal of International Management – JIM: 44, Journal of World Business – JWB: 59, Management International Review – MIR: 50). In other words, two annual volumes of each of the above journals could be filled solely with papers on the topic of distance. However, our knowledge of distance, in terms of conceptual specification and consequences for IB practice, is incomplete and sometimes ambiguous. In this research volume, we therefore analyze the conceptualization and impacts of distance in IB research, through various complementary lenses, each of these contributing in a substantive fashion to fill present knowledge gaps. [...]