Reputation for toughness and anti-dumping rebuttals: Competitive rivalry, perceived benefits, and stage of the product life cycle

Anti-dumping petitions are strong signaling devices for price competition to both domestic firms and foreign competitors. Previous research mainly examines the strategic considerations of domestic firms seeking anti-dumping protection. This study takes the perspective of the foreign competitor and investigates the conditions that influence the foreign competitor's decision of whether to conduct or abstain from an anti-dumping rebuttal. The results of a path analysis show that the potential value created from an anti-dumping rebuttal and the target product's stage within the product life cycle, through perceived benefits and competitive rivalry, respectively, jointly influence the foreign competitor's reputation for toughness, which determines whether or not the foreign competitor pursues an anti-dumping rebuttal. Fuzzy set/qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) offers additional evidence for the predicted relationships. These findings broaden the theoretical understanding of the regulative, normative, and cognitive elements of institutions in the context of anti-dumping rebuttals.