Digitalisation as a push or pull factor for foreign direct investments: a meta-analysis

The empirical literature on digitalisation and foreign direct investment (FDI) reports heterogeneous findings. We interpret this evidence through two complementary mechanisms: digitalisation may act as a pull factor for inward FDI by improving infrastructure and market accessibility, or as a push factor for outward FDI by strengthening firms’ technological capabilities and facilitating international expansion. We conduct a meta-regression analysis of 56 primary studies comprising 959 estimates to examine the sources of heterogeneity, accounting for publication bias, methodological choices, and study characteristics. The synthesised evidence indicates a small but statistically significant average association between digitalisation and FDI. However, results differ substantially across mechanisms. After accounting for publication bias and study characteristics, push-factor studies report positive associations with outward FDI, whereas pull-factor estimates are more heterogeneous and sensitive to study characteristics and empirical context. These findings highlight the importance of distinguishing between push and pull mechanisms when interpreting the digitalisation–FDI relationship.