Do indigenous firms incur a liability of localness when operating in their home market? The case of China

Liability of foreignness has been one of the building blocks of theories of multinational enterprises. This paper looks at a parallel issue - the liability of localness that local firms may face as a result of foreign firms’ presence in their country. The results show that local Chinese firms enjoy location-based advantages over their foreign counterparts and these, together with their firm-specific advantages, have significant positive effects on their performance. The superior firm-specific advantages of foreign firms appear to erase the magnitude of such effects and create a significant negative impact on local Chinese firms’ performance, and this effect is heightened by foreign firms’ multinationality advantages. The research suggests that local Chinese firms incur a liability of localness, and the extent of the negative impact of such liability on local firm performance is largely dependent on the relative strength of various advantages that the local and foreign firms possess

Expatriates in China: A Review of the Literature

This paper reviews the literature on expatriate managers and expatriate management in China that has been published since 1990, examining the major findings. The literature is divided into three categories: first, papers which generally describe issues related to the deployment of expatriates in China, their circumstances there and the challenges they face; second, research which has examined the adaptation of individual managers and their families to living and working in China; and, third, studies which focus on strategic human resource management matters, such as localization. The paper critically assesses the contributions made by these studies, both to theory and to management practice. Several gaps are identified which might be addressed by future research

Do Foreign Firms in China Incur a Liability of Foreignness? The Local Chinese Firms’ Perspective

Liability of foreignness has been one of the building blocks of multinational enterprise theory development, but we have limited knowledge about the liability of foreignness in the context of multinationals operating in developing countries. This study suggests that in a developing country like China, foreignness may still exist, but its negative impact on foreign firms’ performance may have become insignificant. Local Chinese firms were found to enjoy significant location-based advantages over their foreign counterparts, contributing to liability of foreignness. However, the adverse effects of liability of foreignness on foreign firms appear to be off-set by the foreign firms’ superior firm-specific and multinationality advantages over local Chinese firms. Further, the location-based advantages that foreign firms have built up over time further serve to strength their overall competitive position in China

Choice of FDI Entry Mode by Chinese MNCs: An Integrated Framework and Empirical Evidence

Based on an integrated theoretical framework of the determinants of foreign direct investment entry mode decisions, comprising the perspectives of strategic behavior, transaction costs, organizational capabilities, and institutional influence, we first conducted a pilot investigation of ten Chinese multinational corporations (MNCs) with the aim of validating the framework. This was followed by a survey of 138 Chinese MNCs which examined the factors that affected those firms’ FDI entry mode choice between wholly owned subsidiary and joint venture. The results suggest that the FDI entry mode choices of Chinese MNCs do not differ from those of Western or developed country MNCs from either an institutional or transaction cost perspective. However, there are major differences between Chinese and Western MNCs from an organizational capability and a strategic behavior perspective. The implications of these findings are discussed, focusing on the decision-making process used by Chinese MNCs in their FDI entry mode choices

Morning quiet-time ionospheric current reversal at mid to high latitudes

The records of an array of magnetometers set up across the Australian mainland are examined. In addition to a well-defined current whorl corresponding to the ionospheric <i>S<sub>q</sub></i> current system, another system of eastward flowing currents is often found in the early morning. The system is most easily identified at observatories poleward of the focus of the <i>S<sub>q</sub></i> system, where a morning reversal from eastward to westward currents can be seen. The time of the reversal is usually later, sometimes up to 12h local noon, in June (Southern Winter) than in other seasons. There is some evidence of a similar current system at other longitudes and in the Northern Hemisphere. An important outcome of the study is that it enables identification of which features of a daily variation of the northward magnetic field Δ<i>X</i> relate to an <i>S<sub>q</sub></i> current whorl and which must be attributed to some other current system

Detection of Group Sentiment for Dynamic Reaction Moments in Videoconferences

The present disclosure describes computer-implemented systems and methods for providing dynamic reactions in a synchronous videoconference by identifying the individual reactions of the participants and displaying a full-screen dynamic reaction moment when a number over a threshold of the participants share the same reaction. Dynamic reaction moments allow for the group in the videoconference to work together to convey the collective expression of the group. Participants will feel the celebration of the group and recognition from the team, encouraging the participants and enhancing team unity

Optimisation of microparticle formulations for IL-4 delivery for macrophage modulation in spinal cord injury

Spinal cord injury currently lacks treatment capable of restoring limb function and sensation. Current strategies, using pharmaceuticals and physiotherapy, focus on alleviating the high inflammatory environment triggered as a result of injury. These often result in adverse side effects and no rehabilitation. The discovery of macrophage phenotypes and their roles in inflammation within spinal cord injury has provided a new target for treatment development. Understanding macrophage behaviour and the roles of their sub-phenotypes has suggested a method for controlling inflammation by modulation towards a pro-immunoregulatory subgroup using cytokine interleukin 4 (IL-4). The hypothesis was that sustained delivery of IL-4 could modulate macrophage phenotype and provide resolution in the context of inflammation in spinal cord injury. The use of microparticles is widely reported as a drug delivery method for controlled and sustained release in pharmaceutical strategies. The ability to tailor the release of proteins from microparticles by changing their composition ensures a specific release pattern can be obtained for specific applications. Poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) and various release modifiers such as polaxamers F127 or P188 and triblock co-polymer were used to tailor microparticle release in this project. IL-4 was encapsulated following the tailoring of microparticle release using a model protein. These particles were used to treat two cell macrophage models, THP-1 cells and immortalised bone marrow derived macrophage cells. The effects of exogenous IL-4 delivery and microparticle IL-4 delivery on macrophage modulation were compared, the aim being to modulate towards a pro-immunoregulatory subgroup. The use of different microparticle formulations to obtain a database of release profiles was explored in this work, in order to obtain controlled and sustained protein release. From the microparticle formulations tested, 20 % w/v total polymer 40 % w/w TB4 85:15 PLGA was chosen as the optimal formulation to result in sustained delivery of a model protein, and this was replicated using IL-4. Difficulties in characterising a dynamic macrophage population in vitro are also highlighted in this work. The exogenous modulation of macrophage cells to specific subgroups was examined and compared with the results of microparticle induced modulation. The main findings were that the treatment of macrophage cell models with IL-4-containing microparticles resulted in a reduction of proinflammatory cell markers in a similar manner to the treatment with exogenous IL-4. These results also demonstrated the release of active IL-4 from polymeric microparticles. It is hoped that this approach will lead to a therapy targeting the inflammatory environment in spinal cord and in doing so aid repair and regeneration

Geomagnetic lunar and solar daily variations during the last 100 years

This paper describes long-term changes in the geomagnetic lunar (L) and solar (S) daily variations. We analyze the eastward component of the geomagnetic field observed at eight midlatitude stations during 1903–2012. The amplitude and phase for the semidiurnal component of the L and S variations are examined. Both L and S amplitudes correlate with the solar activity index F10.7, revealing a prominent 11 year solar cycle. In both cases, the correlation is slightly better with inline image than F10.7. The sensitivity of the L variation to solar activity is comparable with that of the S variation. The solar cycle effect is also found in the phase of the S variation but not apparent in the phase of the L variation. The ratio in the amplitude of the L to S variation shows a long-term decrease (approximately 10% per century), which may be due to a reduction in lunar tidal waves from the lower atmosphere to the upper atmosphere in association with climate change