Topic: Sociopsychology of Global Decoupling

Abstract: Why is the global economy pulling apart? Geopolitical rivalry, protectionism, and weakened global institutions explain only part of the story. This talk looks beneath these visible forces to examine the deeper sociopsychological dynamics shaping how societies view other countries, foreign companies, and globalization itself. It highlights four powerful forces behind global decoupling: ideological prejudice, nationalistic identity, cultural supremacism, and antiglobalization sentiment, showing how they can amplify geopolitical and economic tensions by deepening distrust, hardening social divisions, and increasing resistance to international integration. The talk takes a closer look at ideological prejudice as an especially important but often overlooked source of global division, exploring how it develops through sociocultural, political, and economic processes, what intensifies it, and how it can undermine cross-border trust, disrupt global value chains, heighten geopolitical risk, and complicate coordination within multinational enterprises. Because companies differ in where they operate, whom they serve, and how they are perceived, they also differ in their exposure to these pressures. The talk concludes by considering how multinational enterprises can respond through pragmatic global leadership, inclusive organizational cultures, ideological competence, geo-cultural intelligence, and responsible global engagement. Its central message is that managing global decoupling requires more than adapting to tariffs, regulations, and geopolitical constraints; it also requires understanding and navigating the deeper psychological, cultural, and identity-based divisions that are becoming embedded in societies, stakeholder relationships, and multinational organizations themselves.

Speaker: Professor Yadong Luo, Emery Findley Distinguished Chair and Professor of Management, Miami Herbert Business School, University of Miami, Fellow of the Academy of Management (AOM) and the Academy of International Business (AIB)

Bio: Yadong Luo holds the Emery Findley Distinguished Chair and is Professor of Management at Miami Herbert Business School, University of Miami. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Management (AOM) and the Academy of International Business (AIB). Professor Luo has authored more than 20 books and over 220 research articles, including more than 60 in journals on the UT Dallas list. His scholarship spans global strategy, cooperative alliances, cross-cultural management, and emerging-market enterprises. His numerous honors include the JIBS 50th Anniversary Gold Medal; the AOM International Management Division Educator Award and Hyundai Motor Eminent Scholar Award; the University of Miami’s Lifetime Achievement Award; and an Axiom Gold Medal for his recent book. His h-index is 123, with more than 67,000 citations on Google Scholar. Before entering academia, he worked in international business and public policy.

Moderator: Junior Associate Research Fellow Chaowen Deng

Time: 13:30-15:00, Tuesday, October 13, 2026

Venue: Guoshun Campus, Room 403, Starr Building

Faculty members and graduate students interested in the relevant research areas are welcome to attend.