Date of Award

Summer 2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)

Committee Chair

Anthony Negbenebor

Abstract

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is widely recognized as a catalyst for regional economic development; however, limited research has examined its relationship with employment growth at the metropolitan level within individual U.S. states. This study examined the relationship between FDI and employment growth across fifteen North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) from 2010 to 2019. Guided by Dunning's Eclectic (OLI) Paradigm (1988), Endogenous Growth Theory, the Human Capital/Absorptive Capacity Framework, and Institutional Capacity Theory, this quantitative study employed a balanced panel dataset of 150 MSA-year observations. Fixed-effects panel regression models with cluster-robust standard errors were used to examine the effects of FDI on employment growth while accounting for educational attainment, the North Carolina Economic Tier Index, and regional gross domestic product. The results indicate that regional gross domestic product was the strongest and most consistent predictor of employment growth. In contrast, FDI measures were not statistically significant after controlling for regional economic conditions. Educational attainment demonstrated limited moderating effects, whereas the Economic Tier Index produced inconsistent results across models. Overall, the findings suggest that regional economic capacity is a stronger predictor of employment growth than foreign investment alone. The study contributes metropolitan-level evidence to FDI research and offers practical implications for policymakers and economic development practitioners.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License

Download

Share

COinS