Evidence suggests that firms often do not respond to competitive attacks even when they are aware of an attack and have the capability to counter it. We believe that this is because they engage in a form of nonresponse that we designate as strategic forbearance, a phenomenon that has been mostly neglected by scholars of competitive dynamics. We view such forbearance as a critical component of competitive strategy – an attempt to situate responses to attacks within a more complex and nuanced strategic, organizational and environmental context. Forbearance, we argue, represents managers’ mindful attempts to transcend reflexive responses by expanding the range of considerations a) beyond an attacker to other stakeholders and rivals, b) beyond the immediate attack to its historical setting and long-term relational implications, and c) beyond unitary tactics to those concerning global strategic coherence and adaptation. We define formally and tentatively operationalize strategic forbearance, before deriving propositions concerning its five general transcending drivers. Ultimately, we believe, the study of forbearance can bring scholars of competitive dynamics closer to the heart of the reflective competitive strategy.

中文翻译：

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宽容：对竞争性攻击的战略不回应

有证据表明，即使公司意识到攻击并有能力应对，他们通常也不会对竞争性攻击做出反应。我们认为，这是因为他们采取了一种我们称之为战略宽容的不回应形式，这种现象大多被竞争动态学者所忽视。我们将这种宽容视为竞​​争战略的关键组成部分——试图在更复杂和微妙的战略、组织和环境背景下应对攻击。我们认为，宽容代表了管理者通过扩大考虑范围 a) 超越攻击者到其他利益相关者和竞争对手，b) 超越对其历史背景和长期关系影响的直接攻击，来超越反思性反应的谨慎尝试，c) 超越单一战术，转向有关全球战略一致性和适应的战术。在推导出有关其五个一般超越驱动因素的命题之前，我们正式和暂时地定义了可操作的战略宽容。最终，我们相信，对宽容的研究可以使竞争动态的学者更接近反思性竞争战略的核心。