The Influence of Multinational Corporations on Institutional Diffusion in Emerging Markets: Evidence from Hiring the Disabled in Korea

Abstract

Institutional theory has largely ignored the institutional diffusion

across borders although it is a common phenomenon in this

interconnected world. We examined the influence of the MNC on

institutional diffusion in emerging markets. In a research setting of

hiring the disabled in Korea, hypotheses were tested with a sample of

948 firms including 101 MNC subsidiaries. Results support the

propositions that MNC subsidiaries from major advanced economies

hire more disabled workers, and this tendency is diffused to subsidiaries

from other countries in Korea. However, we failed to find the evidence

that MNC subsidiaries exert isomorphic pressures to local players.