The effect of export market-oriented culture on export performance: Evidence from a Sub-Saharan African economy

The purpose of this paper is to examine how export learning capability and export environmental turbulence serve as mechanisms and boundary conditions to link export market-oriented culture to export performance.

A quantitative approach was undertaken to analyse longitudinal data of 249 small- and medium-sized exporting firms in Nigeria, a Sub-Saharan African economy.

Four major findings emerged from the study. First, export market-oriented culture positively influences export performance. Second, possessing an export market-oriented culture results in the development of high export learning capabilities. Third, export learning capability mediates the relationship between export market-oriented culture and export performance. Fourth, increases in export environment turbulence weaken the positive effect of export learning capability on export performance.

This study does not investigate moderating effects which might affect the relationship between export market-oriented culture and export learning capability as this was beyond the scope of this study.

This study looks at developing economy environment as a unique context to examine the direct, mediating, and moderating effects of export market-oriented culture on export performance.