Guanxi-oriented attitude and the selection of communication modality under friction events

The purpose of this study was to investigate how guanxi-oriented attitude, of salespersons will influence their behaviors, such as the selection of communication modality, under friction events. Data was collected via questionnaire from persons selling equipment in the oil industry. The partial least squares (PLS) method is applied to analyze the collected data. The study finds that the guanxi-oriented attitude positively influences the use of informal communication and negatively influences the use of formal communication. Our findings yield implications to managers on how to guide the employees to behave or act in the manner desired by the firm, and the findings imply that the managers may benefit from screening sales applicants in terms of their opinions of the importance of guanxi before hiring, and reinforcing positive guanxi-oriented attitude after hiring.