PROFESSIONALISM AND SME INTERNATIONALIZATION: THE EFFECT OF PROFESSIONAL AUTONOMY AND PROFESSIONAL COMMITMENT
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Abstract
This study examines the influence of professionalism on the internationalization of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria. Guided by a positivist philosophical stance and a deductive research approach, the study employed a cross-sectional survey across the six geo-political zones of Nigeria, using a probability sampling technique and a total calculated sample size of 365.14. Data were collected using a five-point Likert scale instrument, with 330 valid responses analyzed. Descriptive statistics, factor analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), and non-parametric tests (Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis, Median test) were applied. Hypotheses were tested using chi-square tests. The conceptual model positioned professional autonomy and professional commitment as independent variables and SME internationalization as the dependent variable. Reliability testing yielded a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.933, exceeding the 0.70 threshold. PCA results confirmed the validity of the measurement structure, with KMO values above 0.6 and Bartlett’s tests statistically significant (p < 0.05). For professional autonomy, one component explained 54.5% of the variance, while professional commitment had two components explaining 40% and 24% of variance, respectively. Findings underscore that both professional autonomy and professional commitment significantly enhance SME internationalization potential in Nigeria.
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References
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