This paper explores the assumptions underlying the core concept of language used in the growing field of language‐sensitive research in international management. We reviewed 92 articles on the topic of language(s) in multinational corporations published during the period 1997‐2015, and applied a linguistic lens to uncover how these articles ‘talk about language’. The assumptions found in these articles can be grouped into three complementary categories that take a structural, functional or social practice view of language. We go beyond the review by also reflecting on the consequences that these underlying assumptions have for the study of language in multinationals. We consider the social practice view the most promising one, and propose a future research agenda for advancing it and thereby contributing to theorizing about the multinational corporation more broadly.

No abstract

Recent economic geography research has identified the round‐tripping of capital from emerging economies to offshore financial centers (OFCs) and back as foreign direct investment (FDI) as a central element of the global offshore FDI network. However, the factors behind this phenomenon are not yet fully understood. Our study develops a general framework that conceptualizes the phenomenon of round‐trip investment. In particular, we argue that secrecy arbitrage, defined as interplay of onshore corruption and offshore secrecy, largely explains round‐trip investment between onshore jurisdictions and OFCs. First, we argue that part of the round‐trip FDI consists of proceeds from corruption, which is laundered in OFCs and reinvested back to the location of origin. Second, we maintain that the secrecy dimension of the OFC also motivates the round‐tripping of licit capital, as businesses use the secrecy provided by OFCs to hide their true identities from corrupt authorities in the home location. To test the validity of our argument about onshore corruption as a driver for round‐trip investment, we empirically analyze firm‐level data on the distribution of offshore FDI (which, we argue, is largely round‐trip) across Russian regions. Our empirical findings confirm that FDI from OFCs is positively associated with host region corruption, and this relationship is stronger for OFCs with a higher secrecy score. Hence, we conclude that round‐trip FDI is strongly motivated by the interplay between onshore corruption and offshore secrecy.

No abstract

No abstract