Where do social ties come from? Institutional framework and governmental tie distribution

This study identifies the societal institutional framework as the cause responsible for the tie distribution issue – social ties are possessed unevenly across social categories. The analysis of 250 Chinese firms showed that managers employed by state-owned enterprises possess more governmental tie pathways – conduits to get acquainted with government officials – than those employed by nonstate-owned enterprises. Governmental tie pathways completely mediated the relationship between ownership types and tie distribution. Extensiveness of governmental tie possession was negatively related to governmental tie activation.