Business Question

Overview

Research Assignment Instructions

Overview

The purpose of the Research Assignment is for you to write a professional, graduate-level research paper. A research project requires an in-depth analysis, interpretation, or argument based on independent research. Unlike basic essays, it requires you to synthesize expert knowledge from diverse sources and present a unique perspective on a specific topic. Please see the chart below for assignment due dates.

Instructions

For each assignment, you will write a paper in response to the matching prompt below.

Research: FDI Trends and Economic Development Assignment

Global Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has declined over the past 2 years, falling in 2023 and 2024, with a sharp drop of 14% in Q1 2025 compared to the previous quarter. This decline is due to high geopolitical tensions, a slowing global economy, and tighter financing conditions, particularly for developing countries. FDI is shifting from manufacturing to services, but growth in the digital economy remains concentrated, leaving many developing nations behind due to gaps in infrastructure, regulatory environments, and skills.

The assignment: Research, analyze, and provide substantive guidance to a corporation navigating their international positioning. The emphasis should be on the key factors driving FDI, which include the host country’s market size and potential for growth, economic and political stability, availability of skilled labor and resources, favorable tax rates, quality of infrastructure and transportation, and access to free trade areas. Investors also look for opportunities to gain competitive advantages, such as acquiring strategic assets, achieving economies of scale, or reducing operational costs through lower labor wages and proximity to raw materials. Economies of Scale in FDI occur when companies achieve lower per-unit production costs by expanding their operations internationally, leveraging global markets to increase production volume and reduce average costs through bulk purchasing, efficient global sourcing, and spreading fixed costs over a larger output.

Key Components of the Research Paper (Must be available and addressed):

• The Selected Countries: Include an overview of the 2 countries for the FDI.
• The Corporation/Company: Include an overview of a real corporation or hypothetical corporation.
• The Body: Provide a critical analysis and comparison of the countries’ market sizes and potential for growth, economic and political stability, availability of skilled labor and resources, favorable tax rates and labor costs, quality of infrastructure and transportation, proximity to raw materials, and outsourcing of critical materials.
  • Market Sizes and Potential for Growth: Provide substantive narrative on demand and subsequent revenue potential.
  • Economic and Political Stability: Provide substantive narrative regarding a steady macroeconomy with low inflation, consistent growth, and low unemployment. Detail the predictability and durability of the government and its institutions, free from major unrest or crises.
  • Availability of Skilled Labor, Tax Rates, and Labor Costs: Provide in-depth research for data (use more than 1 source of data) and present the results.
  • Quality of Infrastructure and Transportation (Endowments): Provide substantive information on the effectiveness and safety of physical systems for moving people and goods, including roads, bridges, public transit, airports, etc.
  • Proximity to Raw Materials, Resources, and Outsourcing of Critical Materials: Provide substantive information on how closer proximity enables quicker access to materials, ensuring a more reliable and streamlined flow of supplies for production. Include this key factor: “Outsourcing critical materials creates economic and national security risks due to over-reliance on a few countries.”
  • Personal Perspective: Provide your personal perspective on the best choice for the FDI by integrating Bible verses, theories, and concepts.
• Conclusion: Contextualize the research findings and the better country of the 2 countries. The conclusion is intended to help the reader understand why your paper should matter to them after they have finished reading it. A conclusion is not merely a summary of your points or a restatement of issues but a synthesis of key points.

The paper must have the following structure:

• Cover/Title Page: Refer to the APA Format Quick Guide under Research Resources on the assignment page for an example of a Graduate/Doctoral Student cover page. Competency in current APA format is required of all Business graduates of Liberty University, as set forth by the policy of both the graduate faculty and the administration.
• Abstract: The abstract must be a succinct summary of your paper, allowing readers to know the achievements of the research paper. It must be a single paragraph in block format (without paragraph indentation), and the appropriate length is typically between 150 and 250 words (1 page). Section 2.04 of the APA manual has additional information about the abstract. It should focus on your original research, not on the work of others. The abstract should be self-contained and fully understandable without reference to other sources and should be written in past tense or continuation present tense.
• Table of Contents: The table of contents must include key headings (Levels 1, 2, and 3 only). Levels 4 and 5 should not be included, though they can be found in the narrative. Headings must include an accurate corresponding page number.
• Introductory Paragraph: Since the first paragraph or section of a document is assumed to be the introduction of the paper, the word “Introduction” is not needed. Do not begin a paper with the word “Introduction” as a heading. The paper’s title should be the first heading above the first body paragraph of your paper and must be bolded.
• Key Components of the Research Paper (Refer to the Assignment’s Prompt)
• Format:
  • Use the following as the exact title of your paper: Research Assignment – [Insert the Corporation] Expanding to [Country]. For example: “Research Assignment –Walmart Expanding to Germany.”
  • The paper must have a minimum of 2,500 words and a maximum of 3,000 words. This excludes the word count from the title page, abstract, table of contents, references, and appendices like tables, figures, etc.
  • The paper must meet all writing and formatting expectations in the grading rubric.
  • The paper must be submitted as a Word document and NOT a PDF document.
  • Do not use bullets or list anywhere in the paper.
  • Do not copy/paste passages/narratives from other authors or yourself (previous papers) into the paper.
  • References must be as follows:
    • Minimum of 10 peer-reviewed articles, not including the course textbook and other scholarly sources, cited in current APA format and the reference list formatted using a “hanging indent.”
    • Where only 1 version of the Bible is cited in the narrative, do not include the version in the reference list. But when more than 1 version is cited in the narrative, then you can include the versions of the Bible in the reference list.
    • All peer-reviewed articles and scholarly articles cited must have been published within the last 5 years.
    • The main source of references must be the Jerry Falwell Library, other reputable and professional scholarly journals, and/or business/trade journals.
    • References must include a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) number.
    • Additional references can be from informational venues that deal with the content of the course. Do not select references from blogs, Wikipedia, newspapers, etc.

Briefly introduce the case and state the main problems or questions. Provide context and relevant facts about the situation and the rationale of what you intend to analyze through a summary (this is not an abstract page).

NOTE: The Difference Between Plagiarism and Paraphrasing

Some students do not fully understand the difference between plagiarism and paraphrasing. Paraphrasing is when you take a source or someone else’s idea and say it in your own words. When you paraphrase, you must still give the author’s name, date, title of the source, scholarly journal from where it came, and exact website address or book from where it came. However, when you directly quote a source, it must have quotation marks around the quote, or (if 40 words or more) it must be set in block-quotation format. Give detailed information about where you acquired the quote.

For the purpose of this assignment do not copy/paste passages/narrative from the original authors. You must paraphrase and cite the original authors. You can direct quote phrases, the Bible, mission statements, laws, etc. Do not use the same source more than a total of 3 times within the whole document for quoting or paraphrasing.

Note: Your assignment will be checked for originality via the Turnitin plagiarism tool.