Competitive Structure Research Articles

Identification of male’s badminton talents: A systematic review

The exploration of athlete selection has posed a significant challenge for sports scientists over numerous years, representing a pivotal factor in the success of training endeavors. With the rising prominence of Badminton, the practicalities of talent identification have gained paramount importance. Presently, the identification of exceptional badminton talents relies heavily on coaches’ subjective evaluation models, each coach employing distinct criteria. The difficulty in pinpointing badminton players stems from two primary factors. Firstly, team coaches often lack the proficiency in applying scientific methods to address talent identification issues. Secondly, the scarcity of international publications on badminton player identification, often limited to domestic studies, hinders a comprehensive understanding. Only a handful of authoritative works delve into the intricacies of genius identification. Hence, grounded in a profound comprehension of badminton’s essential characteristics and the competitive structure of players, there is a need to establish a scientific badminton player talent identification index system. This involves exploring scientific identification methods with practical significance. This article reviews literature on male badminton talent identification from the past decade, concluding that it is a scientific, systematic undertaking necessitating a multidimensional and dynamic understanding of the laws governing success in badminton sports and athletes’ growth and development.

Innovation Concentration and Patent Market Structure

Two empirical facts concerning the increase in innovation concentration levels of U.S. industries over the last two decades have been established: innovating firms with larger market shares invest more in R&D and enter into more industries. This paper presents a model of an imperfectly competitive patent market with heterogeneous firms to show that R&D itself increases industry concentration. In the context of an imperfectly competitive patent market structure, firms generate endogenous variable markups. In particular, the price of firms' newly invented knowledge, the profit and survival rate of the innovating firms depend on the market share of the knowledge stock. Firms pay a random fixed cost in each period which together with market share determine the decision on whether to innovate in different sectors. Firms enter different sectors sequentially: they start developing new varieties in a sector with minimal competition, building up private knowledge, and then venturing into other sectors using R&D investment and accumulated knowledge. Finally, we prove that the stationary firm innovation size distribution exhibits a Pareto tail in the steady state.

Seaweed functional strategies, functional groups, and taxon dynamics through a 213-year historical series of Rio De Janeiro Bay

From Darwin’s visit to nowadays, we analyzed the changes in species- and genus-level richness and turnover, equity, diversity, composition, as well as functional group and functional strategy dynamics over a 213-year historical series of the seaweed assemblage from Rio de Janeiro Bay. We developed new analysis methods to serve as a protocol for worldwide functional and bioindicator assessment of seaweed assemblages. Over the two centuries of changes tracked, the integration of taxonomic, functional group, and functional strategy analyses unraveled a trajectory of seaweed assemblage restructuring under human disturbance. Our taxonomic analyses showed a high species and genus turnover and a decline in richness, with the local extinction of the Sargassum genus, responsible for warm temperate kelp forests in the Western Atlantic. Seaweed functional group data presented a trend of morphological simplification and miniaturization, with the decline of marine forest canopy and subcanopy-forming groups favoring filamentous and crustose algae dominance. Functional strategy data showed the historical decline of competitive structuring as an assemblage driver in favor of disturbance and stress-structuring, as highlighted by the competitive strategy decrease, coupled with stress-tolerant and ruderal strategies rise across metrics. These changes were successfully portrayed by the new ecological index we proposed, the C/SR index. It is the first quantitative index for seaweed assemblages, designed to be a trackable metric for conservation, monitoring, and restoration efforts.

Management and organizational research in Asia Pacific: insights from a 40th anniversary review of the Asia Pacific Journal of Management

AbstractGrasping the evolving landscape of management and organizations in Asia Pacific is vital for addressing the challenges and opportunities they both face in the region and beyond. To do so, we conduct a systematic literature review using a bibliometric analysis of the Asia Pacific Journal of Management (APJM), the leading journal for management and organizational research in Asia Pacific that is celebrating its 40th anniversary. A total of 915 articles published by APJM from 2001 to 2024 were retrieved from the Scopus database and subsequently subjected to a performance analysis of productivity (publications) and impact (citations) alongside a science mapping of knowledge (themes). This study reveals a steady increase in APJM publications and citations, underscoring the journal’s growing influence. The globalization of collaboration networks is a noteworthy trend, highlighting the interconnectedness of research efforts across borders. Major themes include cultural understanding and interpersonal networks, as well as the adaptability of organizations in emerging economies. Areas such as innovation, performance, and corporate governance highlight the importance of growth, competitiveness, and responsible management structures, while research on major Asian markets like China, India, and Thailand underscores the relevance of globalization and multinational strategies. The findings offer future directions in key areas such as emerging economies and institutional environments, relationship networks and social resilience, innovation and digital transformation, managing internationalization, and methodological innovation.

Fighting Alone or Mutual Benefit and Win? A Study on Forestry Embodied Energy Competition Network Based on MRIO

Abstract Measuring energy usage in the forestry trade is a topic of great significance. In this article, we use the World Input–Output Database and the multiregional input–output model to establish an embodied energy competition network and assess the influence of global value chain (GVC) integration on competition. The results show that (1) the intensity of competition for embodied energy in forestry is higher for exports compared with imports. Additionally, the import competition network exhibits lower connectivity and overall efficiency. (2) The core regions of the competitive network are primarily found in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. The United States consistently maintains a competitive advantage. However, forestry policies have led to a decline in the status of the United States, (3) The hierarchical structure of export competition is more pronounced. When the weighting degree exceeds 200, this phenomenon becomes more pronounced. (4) From the perspective of GVC, positive embedding in the GVC is negatively correlated with import competition. Backward GVC embedding is positively correlated with import and export competition. On the basis of the above results, this article proposes that countries where backward embedding is the main method should actively participate in building appropriate export international associations, participating in international organizations, and building a relatively harmonious and stable export competition market, thereby helping to maintain economic development and energy environment management.

Issues of assessing the FinTech impact on the financial sector's structure

Subject. This article examines the areas of penetration of FinTech and the impact of the expansion of FinTech and BigTech companies on the structure of the financial sector. Objectives. The article aims to analyze the processes of the emergence of the FinTech phenomenon and its growing penetration into all spheres of finance, identify the consequences of these processes for the structure of the financial sector, as well as formulate the principles for the formation of a balanced structure of the financial sector in the context of its ongoing digitalization. Methods. For the study, I used the systems approach, comparative intermarket analysis, impact analysis of the technological component of economic development at the macro level. Results. The article reveals the main forms and manifestations of the impact of digitalization on the structure of the financial sector and the main activities and types of services of FinTech companies. The article also formulates the principles for the formation of a balanced competitive structure of the financial sector. Relevance. The results of the study can be used by the Bank of Russia and other national financial market regulators to improve approaches to building a modern competitive balanced financial structure.

Implications of Competitive Advantage Strategies in the Buying and Selling Used Iron

This study aims to analyze and identify the competitive structure that forms the key success factors (KSFs) in the scrap metal trading industry, with open innovation as a mediating factor and its effect on competitive advantage. The research employs an explanatory method to explore the causal relationships between variables. Data were collected through questionnaires, direct interviews with business owners, managers, employees, and consumers in the scrap metal trading sector, as well as secondary sources such as articles, journals, online databases, libraries, and government agencies like the Ministry of Trade (Deperindag) and the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS). The data collection techniques include literature review, interviews, and observations. Analytical methods employed in this study include descriptive analysis through company profiling, Porter's Five Forces model for industry competition analysis, and an assessment of open innovation as a mediating factor for competitive advantage. The findings reveal that key success factors contributing to competitive advantage in the scrap metal trading industry are economies of scale, marketing capabilities, access to capital, raw material supply, and technology utilization. The application of Porter's Five Forces, when mediated by open innovation, strengthens the relationship between open innovation and organizational strategy, ultimately leading to sustainable competitive advantage. Competitive advantage is enhanced by increased open innovation, which fosters organizational collaboration, adaptability, and the development of novel strategies. Through the implementation of open innovation, scrap metal trading companies can leverage diverse ideas and resources, enhancing competitiveness in dynamic market environments. Conclusion: The threat of new entrants in the scrap metal trading industry is low, while the bargaining power of suppliers and buyers is strong. The threat from substitute products is weak, and the rivalry among existing competitors is intense. Open innovation contributes to competitive advantage by promoting collaboration, encouraging adaptability, and supporting strategic innovation.

Mediating Effect of Psychological Empowerment Between Perceived Organizational Support and Job Satisfaction Among Engineers in Malaysia

Objective: This research study aims to examine the factors influencing job satisfaction among engineers in Malaysia manufacturing industry. The factors consist of direct compensation, job security, perceived organizational support and mediating role of psychological empowerment. Theoretical Framework: The Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and Herzberg’s two-factor theories were employed in the research and interpret the findings. Method: A quantitative research method was employed to examine the relationships between variables through survey collected from respondents that working in various manufacturing firms across Malaysia. The study utilized a structured questionnaire distributed among 384 respondents via digital platform such as Google questionnaires. This study employed convenient sampling method to ensure representation across different manufacturing sectors. The cross-sectional approach was utilized to capture a snapshot of job satisfaction and its causes at a particular point in time, reflecting current attitudes and influences in Malaysia's manufacturing industry. The data collected will be analyzed using SPSS software for both the pilot test and data analysis. Pearson Correlation, Multiple Regression and PROCESS macro will use to examine the significant relationships between variables and hypothesized relationships. Results and Discussion: The findings show that there are strong positive relationship between direct compensation, job security, perceived organizational support and job satisfaction among engineers. Also, psychological empowerment was revealed as a key mediator to strengthening the link between perceived organizational support and job satisfaction. Research Implications: The results hold practical implications for organizational management and policymakers seeking to increase job satisfaction among engineers. The recommendations include fair and competitive wage structures, ensuring job security through transparent recruiting procedures, creating supportive organizational climates and empowering people to increase job satisfaction.

Socio-economic Diversity and Employee Turnover in the Insurance Industry in Kenya

Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the nexus between socio-economic diversity and employee turnover in the Insurance Industry in Kenya. The study also aimed to evaluate the moderating effect of firm characteristics on the relationship between socio-economic diversity and employee turnover in the insurance industry in Kenya. Methods: This study adopted a combination of descriptive and correlational research designs. The insurance companies from which data was collected were the top 5 insurance companies based on market share in general insurance. The employees of those companies were drawn from the following cadres: middle-level managers, heads of departments, supervisors, and operational staff. This study utilized multi-stage sampling technique involving deliberate sampling and stratified random sampling. A sample size of 338 employees was used in the study and data was collected using a semi structured questionnaire. Descriptive analysis entailed means and standard deviations while inferential analysis entailed regression analysis. Results: The study found a positive and significant relationship between socio-economic diversity and employee turnover in the insurance industry in Kenya. It was also found that firm characteristics have no significant moderating effect on the relationship between socio-economic diversity and employee turnover in the insurance industry in Kenya Conclusion: The study concluded that through effective and competitive salaries, rewarding and giving benefits and commissions to the employees without favoring others, the employees would not think of leaving their respective companies. Recommendations: The insurance companies through the management should ensure that they come up with competitive compensation structures for their workers, ensuring that varied pay is justified to mitigate employee turnover. The insurance companies should offer competitive salaries. Benefits, and commissions, should be given competitively to employees who are talented and who contribute much to the companies. This helps in steering employee productivity and retention thus enhancing firm performance. The Insurance Regulatory Authority and the Association of Kenya Insurers should put in place effective policies to ensure that the companies pay their employee's reasonable salaries.

Evaluasi Penerapan Good Manufacturing Practices Produk Minuman Botanikal Jahe Siap Minum di PT XYZ

<p><strong>In improving the quality of food products as an effort to build a competitive UMKM economic structure, it’s necessary to implement Good Manufacturing Practices to produce the quality and suitable for consumption products. GMP is used as a general reference for food industries which is designed to prevent problems related to the quality and safety of food products. The aim of this research was to evaluated the implementation of GMP for Ginger Botanical Drink product which includes 18 aspects of assessment based on the Minister of Industry's regulation regarding GMP. This research was conducted in a qualitative descriptive. The 11 respondents were employees in the management and production departments with the instruments were field observation and interview on each aspect of GMP parameters. The result of this research showed that GMP implementation at PT XYZ is classified as Level 3 with some non-conformities, there were 2 points in the mayor category from the building aspect, 2 points in the mayor category from the sanitation facilities aspect, 1 point in the mayor category and 1 point in the critical category from the machine and equipment aspect, 1 point in the mayor category from the final product aspect, 1 point in the critical category from the employee aspect, and 1 point in the mayor category from the storage aspect. This proves that the implementation of GMP at PT XYZ is still not good enough, therefore, several improvement recommendations need to be given.</strong></p><p><strong><em>Keywords </em></strong>- <em>Evaluation, GMP, Improvement Recommendations, UMKM</em><em>.</em></p>

Nexus between Competitive Business Strategy and Firm Performance: Moderating Effect of Competitive Intensity

ABSTRACT Business strategy literature argues that firm survival and growth in any competitive environment depend on the adaptation of suitable competitive business strategies. Despite the growing interest in strategic management within the fish farming industry, there is a notable lack of empirical evidence exploring how the competitive environment influences companies’ business strategy and performance. This paper examines the direct effect of competitive strategy and the moderating effect of competitive intensity on business strategy-performance relationship. Using hierarchical regression to analyze 306 samples gathered from fish farming firms of south-Benin, empirical evidence shows that competitive strategy including cost-leadership, and both product quality and marketing differentiation strategies impact positively firm financial performance. This research highlights the relative importance of product quality differentiation strategy. In addition, findings indicate that competitive intensity structure contribute to firm success. Surprisingly, findings show that competitive intensity does not significantly moderate the effect of cost-leadership and product differentiation strategies. Besides, the effect of marketing strategy on firm performance becomes more negative under high competition in the domestic market. Study recommends that firms should gain organizational economic outcomes by pursuing cost-leadership strategy and product differentiation strategy whatever competitive intensity states in the domestic market of fish farming.

Perturbation approaches to achieving diverse and competitive designs in topology optimisation

Utilising topology optimisation to generate diverse and competitive structures enables designers to create elegant and efficient designs according to their aesthetic intuition and functional needs. This study proposes load and support perturbation approaches based on the bi-directional evolutionary structural optimisation (BESO) method to achieve diverse designs. During the optimisation process, noise is introduced to the sensitivity calculations by randomly perturbing the load angles or material properties near the supports, leading to a variety of local optima. Numerical results demonstrate that the proposed approaches are capable of creating designs with similar stiffness but distinct geometries. In addition, the diversity of the obtained solutions can be controlled by utilising different perturbation functions. This work is of significant practical importance in both architecture and engineering, where multiple design options of high structural performance are in demand.

The role of finance in production and international trade

We introduce finance in a neo-classical general equilibrium model of production and international trade to integrate the core microeconomic theory with the theory of finance. The stock of credit, as past savings, finances employment and the acquisition of machines or capital goods. The availability of finance or international financial flows does not affect production or trade patterns, except for nominal factor prices, in undistorted competitive structures. However, distortions such as unemployment, imperfect credit markets, and factor mobility do affect real outcomes and trade. Our results are consistent with contemporary empirical evidence and have policy implications for financial development and institutional quality. Numerical illustrations provide further insights.

Research on Intercontinental Competitive Athletics Characteristics and Evolution Trend of Track and Field in Olympic Games

Track and field were the first event to enter the Olympics and has the largest number of gold medals. Understanding its more than one hundred years of Olympic history is strategically significant for the future sports development of all continents. Using statistical data from 27 Olympic Games between 1896 and 2021, an analysis was conducted using the Boston matrix method from economics. The results indicate that Europe and North America have reached saturation, Africa has made the fastest progress, Asia has rebounded after a 40-year trough, Oceania still has a long way to go, and South America is struggling. Global track and field sports have reached a state of "convergence," characterized by "the strong becoming stronger, the weak remaining weak, and a clear disparity between the strong and weak." In the future, the overall competitive structure is expected to maintain a stable dynamic balance cycle under the dominance of Europe, North America, and Africa.

Growth Determinants, Challenges, and the Role of Micro and Small Enterprises in Debre Birhan City, Ethiopia

Micro and small enterprises (MSEs) are vital components of the economic landscape in Debre Birhan City, Ethiopia. This study examines the factors influencing the growth, challenges, and the role of MSEs in the city. Through primary data collection from MSE owners/operators, key determinants such as the gender, level of education, and family business background of MSEs owners/operators, ownership structure of MSEs, start-up size, market opportunities, and competition from the informal sector were identified as crucial drivers of MSEs growth in the city. However, challenges such as insufficient working capital, limited market linkage, inadequate working premises, lack of technical skills, and inadequate infrastructure and services were found to impede the expansion of MSEs in the city. Despite these challenges, MSEs in Debre Birhan City play a significant role in generating employment, creating wealth, reducing poverty, satisfying customers, and promoting local entrepreneurship. To capitalize on these opportunities and address the challenges faced by MSEs, local authorities and relevant stakeholders must collaborate to create an enabling environment that fosters entrepreneurship, provides access to finance, provides working premises, and improves infrastructure. By addressing these factors, MSEs in Debre Birhan City can realize their full potential as engines of economic growth and job creation. This study provides valuable insights for policymakers, stakeholders, and supporting organizations looking to support the sustainable development of MSEs in Debre Birhan city.

Public Responsibility Towards Indonesian Idol's Music Talent: An Adorno Perspective

The music expressed around us, particularly in the realm of competitive music, faces significant challenges in maintaining subjectivity and objectivity to ensure a fair competition process. This study examines reality shows like Indonesian Idol, questioning whether they are pure competitions or avenues for capitalist profit. From Adorno's perspective, this issue is linked to societal impact, highlighting three main problems: standardization, commodification, and massification. Using both quantitative and qualitative methods, this research involved 67 respondents who completed questionnaires to explore the systematic flaws in Indonesian Idol’s competition structure. The study aimed to analyse how these flaws align with Adorno's concepts of standardization, commodification, and massification, and their influence on public perception and critical thinking. The quantitative aspect involved statistical analysis of questionnaire responses, while the qualitative approach included in-depth interviews to gain insights into participants' views on transparency and fairness in the competition. The findings indicate that Indonesian Idol’s competition system is heavily influenced by industry standards that prioritize commercial success over artistic integrity. This results in a homogenized musical output that caters to mass appeal, undermining the authenticity of the competition. Additionally, the commodification of contestants transforms them into marketable products rather than genuine artists, while the massification process dilutes the cultural significance of the musical content presented. The study concludes that for reality shows to serve as responsible public entertainment, they must instil transparency and fairness in their competition processes. Implementing these principles can foster a more critical and discerning audience, ensuring that such shows contribute positively to the cultural landscape rather than merely serving commercial interests

Group Structure of Multimarket Competition: A Simmelian Theory of Triadic Outcomes and Antecedents

Group Structure of Multimarket Competition: A Simmelian Theory of Triadic Outcomes and Antecedents

Innovative information processes in the aviation industry

Innovative information and other numerous developments resulting from the application process of digitalization constitute a comprehensive structure that is important for any industry, and for the aviation industry in particular. This special relevance stems primarily from the defining characteristic of the aviation industry - the ability to rapidly develop, and is also supported by such important management components as the cost structure, safety and intensity of competition, which play an equally important role both for the domestic aviation industry and for global aviation giants. In the era of large-scale digitalization, the aviation IT industry is facing a number of challenges related to the combination of new distribution channels, social networks, Big data, cloud technologies, etc. One of the main challenges of the time is the need to solve the security problem when software components are distributed and operated in hybrid clouds, the providers of which may be independent from each other. The difficulty lies not only in defining and expressing the desired level of security in software, but also in how cloud services affect security assurances in the aviation industry. However, effective digitalization does not begin with the introduction of the latest technologies, but with the transformation of organizations in order to use the potential of digital solutions.

European Solidarity Takes the Field: The Dimensional Structure of Political Competition in the European Union After the Polycrisis

AbstractMost studies investigating the dimensionality of political space in Europe demonstrate that European Union (EU)‐related issues are orthogonal to the economic left–right dimension. This literature usually employs survey items tapping into general support for the EU. However, the multiple crises that hit Europe after 2008 have polarized even Europhile voters on the more specific issue of European solidarity. This article aims to investigate how voters' attitudes towards European solidarity interplay with their position on the left–right and European integration dimensions, as well as specific economic and cultural issues. Empirical analyses employ original survey data collected in 2019 in 10 EU countries. Results partially support the expectations of regional differences in the dimensionality of the political space, with European solidarity more strongly associated with left–right, EU integration and immigration in Northern EU member states than in Eastern and Southern countries, in which voters are more likely to support solidarity notwithstanding their general political orientations.

The Contender’s Momentum? COVID-19 and IO Relations in the Regime Complex of Financial Assistance

Abstract How do crises affect authority structures in international regime complexes? The international order is characterized by regime complexes consisting of ever more overlapping institutions competing for authority. Most complexes consist of established institutions facing a growing number of more recently created institutional contenders. We argue that crises can alter the competitive structure of regime complexes. From the perspective of states, crisis situations can provide newly created contenders—designed as institutional alternatives—with functional advantages over established institutions. Long-established institutions tend to be highly institutionalized, decreasing flexibility and speed of decision-making. Thus, during crises, states may shift their cooperative activities away from inert institutions and to newly created, more flexible alternatives that are less encompassing. We test the plausibility of our claim by studying the effects of the COVID-19 crisis on the regime complex of financial assistance (FA). The results of a qualitative process analysis of institutional crisis responses combined with a comparative network analysis of the FA complex support our argument. The COVID-19 pandemic provided an opportunity for the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development Bank to position themselves as crisis-proof alternatives for developing countries to established institutions like the World Bank.