A Framework for Evaluating the Impacts of Transnational Corporations in Developing Countries

The purpose of this paper is to present a new framework for evaluating the impacts of transnational corporations (TNCs) in developing countries. The framework is based on emerging frameworks in development studies and geographic research that assess how TNCs affect local resource access and livelihood change in developing countries. The paper argues that households are the primary local-level stakeholders in developing countries and that new research should evaluate how TNCs affect a diversity of resources that households access, including produced, human, natural and social capitals. The paper further argues that employing a broader framework and household analysis will enable more comprehensive analyses of TNC impacts in developing countries and shed light on the effects of new forms of TNC social and environmental strategies and investments.