Importer Behavior: the neglected Counterpart of International Exchange

Abstract

International exchange is a two-sided coin, involving exporters and importers. However, a systematic search of the academic literature reveals a striking imbalance: while exporter behavior has been extensively studied, importer behavior remains a largely neglected area of study, even though importers are playing an ever more important (often dominant) role in consummating trade transactions. In this article, we assert that this neglect stems from two critical – but flawed – assumptions. The first is that exporters are the driving force behind international trade transactions, and the second is that importers follow the neoclassical economics theory of “rational choice” in international sourcing.

We offer an integrated exporter/importer decision framework, a critical review and synthesis of extant studies of importer behavior, and suggestions for future research directions. Evidence shows that much international exchange is better conceptualized as buyer-coordinated importing rather than producer-initiated exporting. Furthermore, the revealed behavior of importers is different from what can be expected of them from the rational choice paradigm, and is messier than what is commonly assumed of them in the export management literature. From a cognitive perspective, our study also suggests that there may exist a fundamental behavioral difference between domestic and IB decisionmaking.