1. ¹Institute of International Business, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan, R.O.C.
2. ²International Business Institute, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
3. ³School of Economic Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
4. ⁴School of Business and Leadership, University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, Washington, USA

Correspondence: Chiung-Hui Tseng, Institute of International Business, National Cheng Kung University, 1, Ta-Hsueh Road, Tainan 701, Taiwan, R.O.C. Tel: +886 6 275 7575 ext. 53512; Fax: +886 6 276 6459; E-mail: ctseng@mail.ncku.edu.tw

Received 29 May 2002; Revised 24 March 2006; Accepted 7 November 2006; Published online 19 July 2007.

Abstract

Multinationality refers to the extent to which firms' business activities span across national borders. Moving beyond prior emphasis on the consequences of multinational expansion, this study sheds light on the antecedents by analyzing how firm resources influence changes in multinationality. Building on the resource-based view of the firm, we propose a framework that consists of resource determinants in two categories: knowledge-based and property-based resources. Empirical results obtained from a sample of publicly held US manufacturing companies show that knowledge-based resources generate faster and longer-lasting influences on international growth than property-based resources. Specifically, resources related to technological and marketing knowledge, and property-based resources related to organizational slack and internally generated profits, are found to be significant driving forces behind growth in multinationality. This study not only advances our understanding of the antecedents of multinational expansion, but also provides implications and avenues for future research.