FDI motives redux: Exploring behavioral assumptions in international business research

Love, J. H., Driffield, N., Lavoratori, K. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0078-4525 and Yang, Y. (2024) FDI motives redux: Exploring behavioral assumptions in international business research. Multinational Business Review. ISSN 1525-383X doi: 10.1108/MBR-09-2024-0168

Abstract/Summary

Purpose – The issue of motivation for FDI is central to IB theory and empirical research. The most common starting point is Dunning’s four motives framework (4M): market seeking, natural resource seeking, efficiency seeking and strategic asset seeking. We explore the genesis, development and application of the 4M framework and demonstrate how it has developed from an abstract typology and heuristic device unsupported by empirical evidence into a set of concrete behavioral assumptions with theoretical and methodological consequences for IB research. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is mainly conceptual, based on relevant theoretical work on FDI motives, and partly methodological, concentrating on the importance of realism for behavioral assumptions in IB. Findings – We demonstrate that the shift in the 4M framework from abstract typology to a set of concrete behavioral assumptions has important implications for the development of IB theory and methodology. A critical issue has largely been ignored: the role of realism in the assumptions on which theory and its empirical testing are based, and the possible consequences of unrealism in key behavioral assumptions. We show that attempts to ‘fix’ the problems inherent in the 4M framework will inevitably fail, and suggest ways in which it is possible to inject more realism into behavioral assumptions underlying FDI motivation. Originality – The paper offers both theoretical and methodological insights for IB scholars interested in FDI motivation. Key words: FDI motives, Behavioral assumptions, Realism, Microfoundations

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/120197
Identification Number/DOI	10.1108/MBR-09-2024-0168
Refereed	No
Divisions	Henley Business School > International Business and Strategy
Publisher	Emerald
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