Abstract
Corruption is widely acknowledged as a critical factor shaping the internationalisation strategies of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), yet its effects remain contested. Drawing on institutional theory and the resource-based view, this study investigates how innovation and quality certification moderate the relationship between corruption and SME internationalisation. Using firm-level data from 236 Indian small and medium enterprises in the World Bank's 2022 Enterprise Survey and applying ordinary least squares regression, we find that corruption exerts a positive influence on SME internationalisation. However, this relationship is significantly attenuated when firms engage in innovation and adopt quality certification, with innovation exerting the stronger moderating effect. These findings contribute to international entrepreneurship literature by illuminating the conditional roles of innovation and certification in mitigating the institutional voids associated with corruption. The study also provides actionable insights for policymakers and entrepreneurs seeking to enhance the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises in corruption-prone environments.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation |
| Early online date | 12 Nov 2025 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | E-pub ahead of print - 12 Nov 2025 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© The Author(s) 2025. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access page (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).
Keywords
- Small and Medium Enterprises
- Corruption
- Certification
- Innovation
- Emerging Economy
- Internationalisation