competitive advantage, corporate social responsibility, industry, research and development, resource-based view theory,

This survey examines the empirical literature on the relationship between public R&D subsidies and private R&D investment over the past five decades. The survey reveals a considerable heterogeneity of empirical results that cannot be explained fully by methodological issues. We aim to provide further explanations of the possible causes of that heterogeneity. In particular, we emphasise a set of issues that, in our view, are critical to understanding the potential effect of public R&D subsidies on private R&D spending. Special attention is paid to the dynamic aspects and composition of firm R&D, the constraints faced by the firm (such as financial constraints), and the amount and source of public subsidies. None of these issues have been investigated in depth. We formulate a set of research assumptions to guide future empirical research in this field.

This study analyses the impact of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on brand value, with the sample being a select group of US corporations with the best global brands. Based on the instrumental stakeholder theory, we confirm that CSR is a valid source of intangible competitive advantage. It is not used, however, to its full potential, given that CSR has a lesser impact on business performance than the size of the company and other conventional financial indicators. We contend that this undervaluation is due to the nonalignment of CSR initiatives with corporate strategy. The value added of this study in terms of methodology is the successful employment of the panel data technique and the introduction of brand value as a measure of corporate performance. We also provide empirical evidence of the long-term nature of the impact of CSR initiatives on corporate performance.

On the basis of theoretical assumptions approached via the investment development path (IDP), this study examines the most important factors for and against the location decisions in foreign direct investment taken by multinational enterprises, considering host countries at very different stages of economic development (Latin American and European Union countries). We carry out different kinds of analysis on a sample of 103 firms belonging to a medium-sized country that has recently achieved the status of developed country. The results reveal that the importance that home country firm managers give to diverse location factors depends to a certain extent on the stage that each group of host countries has reached in the IDP. In line with prior research, we find that firm managers consider mainly the group of factors associated with strategic asset-seeking when deciding to locate their investments in the group of more developed countries (European Union). In contrast, our results show that when these firm managers choose the group of less developed countries (Latin America), social and cultural factors play a more determinant role, thus suggesting the importance of historical and cultural ties between the home and host countries. Journal of International Business Studies (2007) 38, 975–997. doi:10.1057/palgrave.jibs.8400304

The present essay focuses on one of today's core issues in management, namely, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Following in the wake of the three preceding book review essays that have appeared in this journal ( Guthey, 2005;Jackson, 2005;Watson, 2006), four recent books are collectively reviewed that address CSR and how it interrelates with, and poses important challenges to, the field of strategic management. The books have been written by leading experts in the field, are already making a significant publishing impact and will likely (and hopefully) exert considerable influence on both the scientific community and business practitioners.CSR is both a core and emerging issue in management, with a myriad of questions yet to be posed and countless questions still to be answered. Globalization processes of a more or less disruptive nature, the tremendous influence of the media, the agglomerated power of multinational corporations, the immense leverage applied by transnational