Dahadha, Enas (2022) Challenges to the Internationalisation of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Palestine. Doctoral thesis, York St John University.

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Abstract

There are a number of challenges related to internationalisation in companies of all sizes. Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) from developing countries have particular issues to handle. Although there is various research in the field of internationalisation, country-of-origin (COO), and SMEs, the impact of existing research in the specific area of Palestinian SMEs is, arguably, under-researched. This study aims to shed light on the challenges faced by those involved in various aspects of the international trading process and suggest ways to reduce their impact through theoretical and practical contributions.

The focus of the study was to consider the issues related to SMEs in general before narrowing the study to concentrate on the context of Palestine from the perspective of the Trade Support bodies and the businesses engaged in internationalising.

The research design for this study consists of a two-phase sequential qualitative method. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken with two distinctive samples. In the first phase, an understanding of internationalisation challenges and how the COO concept is managed have been achieved through interviews with government and non-government officials. Following the guidance, from these officials, regarding the best sector to approach for the second phase, SMEs in the light manufacturing sector gave their experiences of internationalisation.

The data was analysed using the NVivo software package and the thematic analysis technique. Four themes emerged from the analysis of each phase, discussing Palestinian SMEs’ internationalisation challenges and the communication concerns that impact the internationalisation process of these SMEs. In several areas, there was a significant overlap between the findings (themes) of both phases. The final themes that surfaced from the analysis of both phases included challenges to internationalisation, trade facilitation factors, communication issues, and the identification of positive and negative COO associations. These themes are considered the research's ‘incremental’ theoretical contribution.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Status:	Published
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HF Commerce
School/Department:	York Business School
URI:	https://ray.yorksj.ac.uk/id/eprint/7428

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