COMPARATIVE HOSTS

This paper explores ways of comparing industrial and developing nation s that are and have been 'hosts' to multinationals. General problems i n doing this included: defining multinational enterprise; acknowledgin g the formidable number of hosts; finding appropriate measures; clarif ying the meaning of impacts; and recognising the 'truncation problem' (that of slicing into the fabric of the multinational firm). The activ ities of multinational enterprises are considered through time in indi vidual host countries. Since corporate decision making is the point of departure, parameters of corporate choices (those related to opportun ities, political conditions, familiarity, third-country considerations , and specific corporate style) are developed. Various rankings by cou ntries are introduced to establish impact comparisons. The evidence sh ows that impacts differ by country and period. The paper demonstrates the historical importance of industrial countries as hosts and argues that students of economic growth and development should pay attention to all aspects (not simply the direct investment ones) of multinationa l enterprise impact through time.