European Green Tech FDI in China: The Role of Culture

The purpose of this paper is to investigate to what extent culture and language affect European foreign direct investments (FDI) in mainland-China. It provides an in-depth analysis on the perception of European and Chinese identity and the role played by language in fostering or hampering FDI, along with culture. Design/methodology/approach: our research questions are contextualized and timely/spacely bound through a multiple case study panel of six European companies, which entered the Chinese green tech market through FDI. We used quantitative and qualitative approaches and a three-phase data collection process, based on a specific protocol. Findings: findings suggest that European investors emphasize "intra-Europe" differences rather than a "European collective (id)entity". They have more awareness of the intra-China differences in the post-entry rather than the pre-entry period. The cultural factor goes along with the language dimension, which, in specific cases, is perceived as a higher hurdle than culture. However, by adopting a cognitive and social psychological viewpoint, language and culture are not stand-alone dimensions and intersect with each other. They both contribute to the concept of identity. Research limitation/implication: the analytical generalisation out of our multiple case study is limited to a specific industry and to specific home and target economic areas. Practical implications: our research offers an in-depth insight about the role and the perception of culture of European companies investing in China mainland. This study is not only addressed to academics and scholars, but also to managers who want to approach the market and policy makers.