Collective identity of country-of-origin foreign direct investment agglomeration: an exploratory case study of Mondragon Kunshan Industrial Park in China

In this paper, we explore collective identity construction of expatriates from country-of-origin foreign direct investment agglomeration and its impact on the network relationship among compatriot firms within an agglomeration. The paper adopts a qualitative methodological approach through an inductive case study to look for patterns and describe the relationships among the expatriates of Spanish companies co-located in Mondragon Kunshan Industrial Park based in China. The findings suggest that collective identity is dynamically constructed by expatriates who strategically maneuver their rhetoric repertoire to draw the boundary between us versus them. The salience of collective identity can not only contribute to the expatriates psychological wellbeing and trust building but also support the compatriot firms to gain legitimacy in emerging markets.