Shannon Lindsey Blanton

What Attracts Foreign Investors? An Examination of Human Rights and Foreign Direct Investment

Though the prospective relationship between foreign direct investment (FDI) and human rights has long been a prominent issue within the global political economy, the linkage is empirically underdeveloped. Rather, the conventional wisdom that FDI and respect for human rights are inherently contradictory has persisted. Instead, we posit that respect for human rights may encourage FDI. To examine this issue, we assess the direct effects of human rights upon FDI as well as the extent to which human rights indirectly affects FDI through its impact upon human capital. Using a system of simultaneous equations, we find respect for human rights to have a positive impact upon FDI.

Instruments of Security or Tools of Repression? Arms Imports and Human Rights Conditions in Developing Countries

Scholars traditionally have focused on arms as a means of deterring, initiating, maintaining, or terminating international war. Indeed, based on the assumption that a coercive military response is required if security is to be preserved, arms are widely viewed as an instrument of defense from external threat. In the developing world, however, internal threats are far more common. Yet the role of arms in facilitating domestic political violence has received far less scholarly attention. This article endeavors to expand upon both our understanding of arms as a source of conflict and our knowledge of the correlates of human rights repression. To this end, this study tests the relationship between the importation of arms and the repression of personal integrity rights. Employing a pooled time-series cross-sectional design, the patterns of arms acquisitions behavior and human rights violations are examined for developing countries for the years 1982 through 1992. The results indicate that arms imports by developing countries are linked to poor human rights conditions. Thus, arms acquisitions appear to contribute to repression by making violent political acts more feasible.

Impact of human rights on U.S. foreign assistance to Latin America

Building upon the contributions of previous studies of U.S. foreign aid, this study examines the relationship between human rights and U.S. foreign assistance. Concentrating on the years 1979–1985, the impact of human rights conditions on both economic and military aid allocations to Latin America is analyzed. The results of this analysis indicate that though other factors have a significant effect upon aid allocation, human rights are an important factor in determining the allocation of both U.S. economic assistance and U.S. military assistance. The findings suggest that those countries with better human rights conditions are likely to receive more U.S. aid than others.

The Impact of IMF and World Bank Programs on Labor Rights

What effect do International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank programs have on collective labor rights? Labor rights advocacy networks and organized labor groups have long been critical of neoliberal policy prescriptions attached to loans by international financial institutions (IFIs), claiming that they harm the interests of workers. IFIs dispute these claims, noting that they work with relevant labor organizations and that many of their arrangements call for compliance with core labor standards. Yet very little research has been devoted to whether IFI programs affect labor laws and the actual labor practices of recipient countries. We argue that IFI programs undermine collective labor rights. Specifically, recommended policy reforms, as well as the broader signals connoted by participation in the programs, undermine labor organizations and the adoption of protective laws. To substantiate these claims, we use time-series cross-national data for a sample of 123 low- and middle-income countries for the years 1985 to 2002. Our findings suggest that programs from both IFIs are negatively and significantly related to labor rights, including laws designed to guarantee basic collective labor rights as well as the protection of these rights in practice.

Human Rights and Foreign Direct Investment A Two-Stage Analysis

The authors analyze the impact of human rights conditions on foreign direct investment (FDI). Extant literature in this area raises conflicting expectations. Although the “conventional wisdom” posits that repression creates a stable, compliant, and relatively inexpensive host for FDI, there are contending arguments that the protection of human rights reduces risk and contributes toward economic efficiency and effectiveness. Moreover, the burgeoning “spotlight” regime may also punish firms who locate in repressive regimes. Conceptualizing FDI as a two-part process—the initial decision to invest and the subsequent decision of investment amount—the authors assess human rights as a determinant of FDI. Using a two-stage model, they test their hypotheses across developing countries for the years 1980 to 2003. They find that human rights are a significant determinant of the amount of FDI inflows.

Human Rights and Trade: Beyond the “Spotlight”

Human rights concerns figure prominently on the global economic agenda. Yet little empirical analysis has addressed the prospective impact of human rights for global economic interactions. To gain insight into this linkage, we assess the empirical relationship between human rights and an important facet of the global economy, dyadic trade flows. Traditional arguments posit that respect for human rights and trade are uncomfortable bedfellows at best, and that repression may provide a foundation for increased trade activity. We posit that, alternatively, respect for human rights and trade may be a pragmatic coupling. In addition to the normative value of promoting and protecting human rights, there may be a “business case” as there are ways in which respect for human rights may encourage trade. Using a cross-sectional time-series research design, we test the relationship between human rights and trade for the years 1989–2000. Our results show that human rights conditions have a significant influence on dyadic trade.

Images in Conflict: The Case of Ronald Reagan and El Salvador

International conflict has long been of intrigue to scholars, and numerous explanations have been forwarded in an attempt to understand the causes of conflict. This article seeks to build upon explanations of conflict by focusing upon the psychology of decision-making with regard to the impact cognitive images have upon policymakers as imperfect information-processors. While various studies concerning other aspects of the belief system have provided examples of cognitive techniques for managing information, little attention has been given to systematically analyzing the specific mechanisms. Employing thematic content analysis, this study engages in such an inquiry so as to achieve further understanding of the actual methods by which actors manage information contradictory to their image. Focusing specifically on Ronald Reagan and his image of El Salvador between the years 1980 and 1984, the findings of this study indicate that specific cognitive procedures for managing discordant information do indeed exist, and that information processing may be influenced by multiple images. International conflict has long been of intrigue to scholars, and numerous explanations have been forwarded in an attempt to understand the causes of conflict. This article seeks to build upon explanations of conflict by focusing upon the psychology of decision-making with regard to the impact cognitive images have upon policymakers as imperfect information-processors. By examining the procedures used by Ronald Reagan to manage information challenging his image of El Salvador, this study adds to our understanding of the cognitive dynamics involved in individual decision-making and reveals yet another avenue through which conflict may be defused or intensified. A number of studies examine how images relate to political perceptions, decision-making and behavior (Holsti, 1967; R. Cottam, 1977; M. Cottam, 1989, 1992a; Herrmann, 1984, 1985; Shimko, 1993). However, as of yet, little attention has been given to the cognitive mechanisms whereby actors maintain these images. It has been argued that decision makers are captives of their own beliefs and expectations, and that information concerning other actors is likely to be perceived in a manner consistent with ones image of that actor (Finlay, 1967). Concentrating on how a policymaker organizes, simplifies, and orders his political world view and examining the cognitive techniques through which he manages information about others may lead to an understanding of how information is processed and political Authors note: I would like to thank Harvey Starr, Rober-t Blanton, Char-les W. Kegley, Jr., and the editors and referees

Is Foreign Direct Investment “Gender Blind”? Women's Rights as a Determinant of US FDI

ABSTRACT The impact of womens rights on a countrys competitiveness in the global economy is a source of contention. While educational opportunities for women, as well as political empowerment, are linked to a variety of positive outcomes, the impact of economic rights is mixed. Toward better understanding these issues, we focus on the role of womens rights in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI). Though foreign capital plays a key role in the development strategies of many countries, and many of the growth areas in FDI rely heavily on womens labor, extant literature on the determinants of FDI largely ignores gender. To gain insight into these issues, we examine the impact of womens political, economic, and educational rights across four different types of US FDI into the developing world. We find a mixed relationship between womens rights and FDI that varies across industrial sectors.

Democracy, human rights, and U.S.‐Africa trade

The nexus of economic and political relations is a central issue in international relations, and the influence of political liberalization upon trade ties lies at the center of much liberal theory. However, many facets of the empirical linkage between political liberalization—including democratization and the respect for human rights—and trade remain uninvestigated. Examining the case of U.S.‐Africa trade, this study considers two unexplored facets of these political determinants of trade: (1) the role of human rights conditions, and (2) the robustness of the relationship between democracy, human rights, and trade across a subset of vertical dyads. Using a gravity model to assess trade patterns, we find that neither democracy nor human rights conditions has a significant impact upon U.S. trade to Africa.

Neoliberal Policies and Human Trafficking for Labor: Free Markets, Unfree Workers?:

While the economic benefits of neoliberalism are widely noted, its impact upon human security is contentious, particularly in the area of equity and economic rights. In this article, we examine the impact of free-market policies upon a particularly egregious abuse of human and labor rights, trafficking in forced and child labor. Drawing from relevant scholarship on market liberalization and human trafficking, we posit that policies that promote market deregulation, reduced state size, and global economic openness are positively related to trafficking of child and forced labor. To test these claims, we combine data on three main facets of pro-market policies—a “business-friendly” regulatory environment, reduced state size, and policies favoring global economic openness—with data on human trafficking for forced and child labor. We find that economic liberalization in general significantly increases the likelihood of human trafficking for labor purposes. Our results further suggest that among the three facets of neoliberal policies, a market-friendly regulatory environment has the most significant impact upon labor trafficking. Overall, our results point to a conflict between the universally professed aversion to human trafficking and the dominant neoliberal approach to economic policy.