When do ethnic networks help with foreign direct investment location?
Review of International Business and Strategy
ISSN: 2059-6014
Article publication date: 27 July 2022
Issue publication date: 24 March 2023
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify how the cultural attributes of ethnic networks affect foreign direct investment (FDI) location.
Design/methodology/approach
The study tests on panel data the effect of ethnic networks in interaction with their member’s cultural attributes on FDI location.
Findings
Results show that ethnic networks whose members predominantly exhibit a human orientation do not affect FDI location. However, when performance orientation is the predominant cultural attribute of the members of an ethnic network, there is a positive and significant effect on FDI location.
Practical implications
Managers need to be aware that not all networks will be equally helpful in achieving particular goals. For instance, ethnic networks where the performance orientation is dominant among their members affect FDI location, unlike ethnic networks where human orientation is dominant. Therefore, decision-makers need to identify and align these two elements (networks and goals) to maximize outcomes.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature by suggesting that FDI location is affected by ethnic networks where performance orientation is dominant among the members, which is not the case when human orientation is dominant among the members of the ethnic networks.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Andres Vasquez for the substantial research assistance provided for this project. Thanks to Fabian Osorio for his insightful comments. Thanks, as well, to the editor, Hussain Rammal, and anonymous reviewers for their helpful observations and suggestions.
Citation
Alcaraz, J. and Salamanca, E. (2023), "When do ethnic networks help with foreign direct investment location?", Review of International Business and Strategy, Vol. 33 No. 3, pp. 397-415. https://doi.org/10.1108/RIBS-05-2021-0071
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited