Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses on the philosophical foundations of a specific strategy, i.e., coopetition strategy. It discusses the main differences between paradox and contradiction, opposition, dualism, duality and oxymoron. The book introduces the Chinese yin-yang philosophical viewpoint and systematically analyzes its key components, such as Confucianism, Taoism and Legalism in the light of coopetition. It summarizes the interpretative framework of the philosophical foundations of coopetition. Coopetition intended as a phenomenon regards the emergence of a spontaneous coopetitive behavior that we may evaluate only by analyzing individual motives and actions. The book outlines a synopsis of Eastern and Western thoughts on coopetition strategy, draw some conclusions underlining our study’s implications for coopetition theory and, more generally, for paradoxical strategies.