Effect of Information Access through Social Capital on Mitigating Business Opportunism of Small Enterprises in Sri Lanka

 M. S. Priyanath and S. P. Premaratne

Abstract

The study explored how information access through different dimensions of Social Capital (SC) (structural, relational and cognitive) affects the mitigation of business opportunism. Data were collected from 373 Small Enterprises (SEs) in Sri Lanka, conducting face-to-face interviews with the owners of SEs. Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was employed to analyse data. The results revealed that information accessed through different dimensions of SC have significant negative effects with business opportunism of exchange partners. Therefore, the study recommends SEs to develop SC while having strong relationships with exchange partners in order to access information leading to the mitigation of opportunism of exchange partners.

Keywords: Information, Opportunism, Small Enterprises, Social Capital, Transaction Costs