Shaalan, AhmedEid, RiyadTourky, Marwa2023-10-192023-10-192023-11-03Shaalan A, Eid R, Tourky M. (2023) A rejoinder to: “Questioning the appropriateness of examining guanxi in a wasta environment: why context should be front and center in informal network research – a commentary on ‘de-linking from western epistemologies: using guanxi-type relationships to attract and retain hotel guests in the Middle East’”. Management and Organization Review, Volume 19, Issue 5, October 2023, pp. 1046-10481740-8776https://doi.org/10.1017/mor.2023.27https://dspace.lib.cranfield.ac.uk/handle/1826/20404This rejoinder responds to a commentary on our paper “De-Linking from Western Epistemologies: Using Guanxi-Type Relationships to Attract and Retain Hotel Guests in the Middle East”. We highlight the distinction we drew between guanxi itself and guanxi-type relationships to dispute the assertion that we imposed a Chinese concept onto a Middle Eastern context. Emphasising our own detailed knowledge of wasta, we explain why wasta was not a suitable umbrella term for the personal networks that operate in all 17 countries where our complex cross-cultural research took place, noting, however, that a discussion of this point would have enriched our study. We also refute a number of other specific criticisms of our methods and approach.enAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 InternationalArticle