Cross-country Analysis Research Articles

Tourism Destination Competitiveness Ranking and Tourism Performance

This research note compares the impacts of the macroeconomic condition on the relationship between tourism destination competitiveness (TDC) ranking and tourism performance. This study utilized the cross-country analysis of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) data among 115 countries. Macroeconomic conditions are conceptualized in high-income versus low-income nations, while the WEF TTCI ranking explains the TDC ranking. The Partial-least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) Multi-Group Analysis (MGA) results showed that TTCI ranking significantly influenced the low-income group’s tourism performance only but not for the developed ones. The results confirm the criticism of the TTCI ranking bias, reflecting the unbalanced competitiveness assessment distribution between advanced and low-income countries. The study findings augment the incomparability among countries on different levels of development and the arbitrary weighting of the TTCI ranking report, which may lead to inaccurate perceptions of the country and incorrect investment decisions.

The Vaccine-Education Paradox in a Cross-Country Analysis: Education Predicts Higher and Lower Vaccination Rates

Research has shown a mixed relationship between education and vaccination rates. In the current analysis, we aimed to determine the relationship between educational level and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination rates. We performed a cross-country analysis on data from 133 countries. Correlation analyses showed that higher and better education was associated with higher COVID-19 vaccination rates. When we performed the regression analysis including the education, health system, and economic development variables, education-COVID-19 vaccination relationships were mostly reversed. In particular, in wealthy countries, as the mean years of schooling decreased and the pupil-teacher ratio increased, COVID-19 vaccination rates increased. In less affluent countries, with greater education expenditures, COVID-19 vaccination rates decreased. We explain these contradictions by describing links between vaccination rates, life expectancy, and education-related variables. Our findings may aid in promoting more effective uptake of COVID-19 vaccination.

ChatGPT adoption and anxiety: a cross-country analysis utilising the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT)

ABSTRACT The public release of ChatGPT in November 2022 brought excitement and concerns regarding students’ use of language models in higher education. However, little research has empirically investigated students’ intention to adopt ChatGPT. This study developed a theoretical model based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) with an additional construct- anxiety, to investigate university students’ adoption intention of ChatGPT in two higher education contexts– the UK and Nepal. 239 and 226 questionnaires were deemed sufficient for data analysis for Nepal and the UK, respectively. We utilised the structural equation modelling technique to test the hypotheses. Our results reveal that performance expectancy, effort expectancy and social influence significantly impacted the adoption intention of ChatGPT for both countries. However, anxiety's impact varied between Nepal and the UK. Integrating UTAUT with a cross-country comparative approach provides insights into how ChatGPT's reception diverges between different higher education contexts. Our results also have implications for technology companies aiming to expand language models’ availability worldwide.

Legal Development and Human Rights: A Study of Legal Reform in Various Countries

This article investigates the development of law and human rights (HAM) through a study of legal reform in various countries. The main focus of the research is to analyze the impact of legal changes on strengthening and protecting human rights amidst the dynamics of legal developments at the national and international levels. This study covers a wide range of legal contexts, including changes in laws, legal policies, and law enforcement mechanisms implemented by various countries. This cross-country analysis provides an in-depth understanding of how legal developments in various jurisdictions contribute to the promotion and protection of human rights. The research findings highlight the variations in legal approaches and challenges faced by countries in achieving higher human rights standards. Several factors influencing legal change are identified, including civil society pressure, political change, and the role of international institutions. Apart from that, this article also discusses the practical and theoretical implications of legal reform on the sustainability of human rights protection. It is hoped that the results of this research will provide a broad view of the importance of legal development in supporting and strengthening human rights at the global level. This article can provide guidance for policymakers, legal practitioners, and other stakeholders in understanding the challenges and opportunities involved in changing the law to improve human rights protection. In conclusion, this research stimulates further discussion and debate regarding the integral role of legal development in advancing human rights in various countries.

Unveiling the Drivers of Global Logistics Efficiency: Insights from Cross-Country Analysis

This study presents a novel approach to assess countries’ relative logistics performance differentials and identifies the underlying drivers using a data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach. The findings offer strategic insights and provide nations with valuable guidance in navigating the dynamic landscape of global logistics competitiveness. Recognizing the pivotal role of logistics in fostering economic activity and contributing to sustainability, we utilize the Logistics Performance Index (LPI) within the DEA model to gauge efficiencies at the country level and scrutinize influencing factors. Our findings indicate that international shipment practices in the last decade, as well as tracking and tracing recently, no longer contribute to the competitiveness of the countries, despite their potential for improvement. The overall change in logistics efficiency during the last decade remained relatively marginal, primarily driven by the frontier-shift effect. However, notable disparities among the country performance groups, particularly in adopting technological advancements, are manifested in the frontier-shift effect. Countries with lower logistics performance should prioritize addressing structural challenges related to customs, infrastructure, quality of logistics services, and timeliness. Medium-performance countries, while benefiting from a focus on customs, tracking and tracing, and timeliness in the early 2010s, are advised to align their efforts with high-performance countries by emphasizing managerial aspects in recent times.

Three Decades of Economic Development in Central and Eastern Europe. A Bayesian Approach to Quantifying Relevant Growth Factors

ABSTRACT With 30 years passing in the transition of the Central and Eastern European countries toward market-based economies, this paper proposes a cross-country growth analysis to observe the most important factors contributing to these unique and historical developments. Specifically, we apply two cross-country growth models based on Bayesian Model Averaging methodology. The analysis outlines the importance of the labor force and the negative correlation between government spending and economic growth in the analyzed countries. These results have interesting implications for decision makers regarding potential policies aimed at promoting economic growth in the region.

Drivers of cryptocurrency regulation: cross-country empirical evidence from US congress data

ABSTRACT This article undertakes a cross-country empirical analysis of the cryptocurrency regulations from around the world based on a data set drawn from the November 2021 Update of the United States Law Library of Congress report on the regulation of cryptocurrencies around the world. Based on the cross-country information provided in the report, a binary variable was constructed to reflect cryptocurrency regulations in the form of an application of tax legislation and/or anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) laws at the jurisdiction level. Results of cross-country logit regressions show that cryptocurrency regulation is significantly and positively associated with perceptions of corruption and bribery and significantly and negatively associated with AML/CFT framework and price stability policy.

Investigating the effects of ICT, education, and R&D on economic efficiency and technology heterogeneity: A cross-country analysis

This study explores the impact of information and communication technology (ICT), education, and research and development (R&D) on countries' economic efficiency and technology heterogeneity. A panel of 52 countries, classified into developed (31 sample countries) and developing (21 sample countries) during 2011–2019, were the data sources for the analysis. We obtained relative country-level economic efficiency and technology gap inefficiency estimates from a novel Bayesian data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach. Bias-corrected estimates yielded by this technique have proven to be valid. We then regressed the estimates on ICT, education, and R&D proxy variables using a two-step and an iterative generalized method of moments (GMM) for linear dynamic panel data. Our analysis mitigates possible feedback effects between the explanatory and response variables, as well as possible endogeneity. The novelty of this work goes beyond the use of a new data analysis technique, investigating the impact of the three factors mentioned above and the country classification on technology heterogeneity caused by differences in countries' market structures, regulatory frameworks, economic and knowledge ecosystems, and cultures. Based on this study's findings, fixed broadband subscriptions have the most significant effect on economic efficiency improvement, while R&D is the main driver for reducing technology gap inefficiency. Specifically, ICT-facilitated knowledge spillovers within and across country groups through R&D cooperation play a significant positive role in closing the technology gap. This finding is consistent with the catch-up theory.

Money Supply, Banking and Economic Growth: A Cross Country Analysis

The primary objective of the research is to understand the interactions between money supply, banking and economic growth for effective policy interventions and business decisions. Based on annual data for the time period (2004-2021), descriptive analysis, correlations, causality tests and panel data regressions are analyzed for a sample from India, Saudi Arabia and UAE to draw conclusions. The results favored the ‘intermediation theory’ and were contrary to the ‘credit creation’ theory of banking. It was observed that the GDP of a country can be efficiently explained by financial soundness, broad money, loans and deposits for a country. Also, that the GDP of a country influences banking loans and deposits but not vice versa. The monetary policy of the sample was questioned by the finding that GDP causes banking loans and banking deposits but not vice versa. This important finding will add to the effectiveness in business decision making.

Is democracy affecting the economic policy responses to COVID-19? A cross-country analysis

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top: 8pt; line-height: 14pt; text-align: justify;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: 'Cambria',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: '等线 Light'; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;">How does democracy relate to the initial economic policy responses to Covid-19? Using a cross country analysis, we find that countries with a higher degree of democracy have stronger economic policy responses than their peers. However, when we separate monetary and financial policies from fiscal policy, democracy is not associated with the latter when we control for the income level of a country. Finally, for countries with lower levels of labor participation, high levels of income inequality are associated with weaker policy responses.</span></p>

Financial structure: A new aspect of analysis and new results

There is growing evidence that the financial structure depends on the level of economic development of the country. In developed countries, firstly, there is a convergence of financial structures and, secondly, an increase in the share of non-bank financial intermediation sectors in national financial systems. Therefore, we propose to proceed to the analysis of the three-tier structure of the financial sector (banks — non-banking financial institutions — financial markets), for which we have developed new indicators that assess the relationship between a non-bank financial intermediation sector and financial markets. They showed that in the last 7—8 years in Russia there has also been an outstripping growth of this sector. Our regression studies, firstly, have confirmed the conclusion that in Russia the financial structure (in the traditional sense) slows down economic growth and, secondly, allowed us to assume (based on the results of a crosscountry analysis) that the current structure of the Russian financial sector (with a predominant share of banks) contributes to an increase in the volatility of economic growth. The behavior of the new financial structure ratios and regression analysis based on traditional financial structure ratios indicate the need to adjust government policy in the financial sector in order to ensure faster growth of financial markets.

Motor fuel retail prices regulation: The influence of the social order characteristics

Regulating retail fuel prices, which are getting particularly volatile, is an urgent issue amid the shock period that the global energy industry is facing today. Price volatility, however, is a factor in coordinating consumers’ and fuel producers’ plans. Economic theory fails to explain why in some countries, during a shock period, governments tend to regulate retail prices, while in others they develop market pricing mechanisms in the fuel market. The article reveals the influence of Douglass North’s social orders on the tendency of governments to establish a price regulation mechanism in the retail fuel market. New institutional economics constitutes the theoretical framework of the study. Among the research methods are case analysis, comparative crosscountry analysis, and statistical analysis. The empirical evidence comes from regulatory legal acts, US and Russian state statistics on fuel prices for 2019–2023, and materials from the GlobalPetrolPrices project. The research results revealed differences in uncertainty assessments by the governments of countries with different social orders: for regulators in open access social orders, industry shock is the reason of finding a new way to adapt to market conditions; for regulators in limited access social orders, it is the risk of destabilization of the social order. Our findings help to outline the institutional rationale behind the implementation of industry-specific policies.

Religiosity and climate change: An eco-religious approach

Abstract An eco-religious approach is one that combines religious beliefs with ecological awareness, thus giving rise to responsibility for the natural environment, such as the threat of a climate crisis due to climate change, as part of the understanding of religion itself. This approach is not universally accepted because views on climate change, and the role of humans in addressing it, can vary among different religions and religious traditions. This research explores the relationship between religiosity and climate change, with a focus on the concept of an eco-religious approach. The aim was to understand how religiosity can influence climate change using the ecological footprint as a proxy. The cross-country robust regression analysis method was employed to address this objective. Robustness and sensitivity model checks were also performed, resulting in reliable regression analysis that can be generalized to various situations. The results of the study suggest that increased religiosity is associated with a decrease in per person ecological footprint. This research suggests a transformation of religious values towards a more inclusive eco-religious perspective, encompassing bio-centric and eco-centric ethics, and not just anthropocentric views. Collaboration between religious and non-religious communities is key in addressing climate change. Religious institutions are also identified as essential agents in mobilizing environmental movements, participating in international forums, and incorporating climate change issues into educational curricula. This research supports the potential of religiosity as a positive catalyst in global efforts to preserve environmental sustainability and address the holistic challenges of climate change.

Fiscal Decentralization and Public Infrastructure Maintenance Expenditures: A Cross-Country Panel Analysis

The often-forgotten dimension of public infrastructure finance is the difficulty of maintaining a proper level of infrastructure in good condition. Given that increasing responsibilities for public infrastructure investment have been decentralized worldwide, this study investigates the impact of fiscal and political decentralization on infrastructure maintenance expenditures using a panel cross-country analysis from 1995 to 2020. To address the endogeneity concerns and estimate the causal impact of fiscal decentralization (revenue and expenditure decentralization), this research uses the Geographic Fragmentation Index and country size as two valid instrumental variables for fiscal decentralization. Our main results confirm that fiscal and political decentralization measures are found to increase public spending on road maintenance. The findings are robust to alternative model specifications and different measures of fiscal and political decentralization.

A Cross-Country Analysis of Islamic Bank’s Performance in Malaysia and Indonesia

This study aims to examine the financial performance of Islamic banks in Indonesia and Malaysia, with a specific focus on optimizing shareholder value. The assessment includes efficiency, market share, interest rates, inflation and economic growth as crucial criteria in comprehending the success of Islamic banks in each country. The secondary data is derived from the annual reports of 25 Islamic banks in Indonesia and Malaysia, with a focus on characteristics pertaining to operational efficiency and market share. Furthermore, data is obtained from Bank Indonesia (BI) to gather statistics regarding inflation, interest rates, and GDP growth from the years 2018 to 2021. The study used panel data regression with a random effects model as the most accurate estimator. The results of the panel data regression analysis suggest that inflation has a favorable effect on return on equity (ROE), while GDP growth has a beneficial impact on return on assets (ROA). This research highlights the importance of enhancing inflation risk management and making strategic adaptations to the business plans of Islamic banks in Malaysia and Indonesia. This research enhances the scholarly comprehension of the variables affecting the efficiency of Islamic banks in diverse economic conditions.

Cross-country analysis of contextual factors and implementation strategies in under-5 mortality reduction in six low- and middle-income countries 2000-2015.

The Exemplars in Under-5 Mortality (U5M) was a multiple cases study of how six low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Nepal, Peru, Rwanda, and Senegal, implemented health system-delivered evidence-based interventions (EBIs) to reduce U5M between 2000 and 2015 more effectively than others in their regions or with similar economic growth. Using implementation research, we conducted a cross-country analysis to compare decision-making pathways for how these countries chose, implemented, and adapted strategies for health system-delivered EBIs that mitigated or leveraged contextual factors to improve implementation outcomes in reducing amenable U5M. The cross-country analysis was based on the hybrid mixed methods implementation research framework used to inform the country case studies. The framework included a common pathway of Exploration, Preparation, Implementation, Adaptation, andSustainment (EPIAS). From the existing case studies, we extracted contextual factors which were barriers, facilitators, or determinants of strategic decisions; strategies to implement EBIs; and implementation outcomes including acceptability and coverage. We identified common factors and strategies shared by countries, and individual approaches used by countries reflecting differences in contextual factors and goals. We found the six countries implemented many of the same EBIs, often using similar strategies with adaptations to local context and disease burden. Common implementation strategies included use of data by decision-makers to identify problems and prioritize EBIs, determine implementation strategies and their adaptation, and measure outcomes; leveraging existing primary healthcare systems; and community and stakeholder engagement. We also found common facilitators included culture of donor and partner coordination and culture and capacity of data use, while common barriers included geography and culture and beliefs. We found evidence for achieving implementation outcomes in many countries and EBIs including acceptability, coverage, equity, and sustainability. We found all six countries used a common pathway to implementation with a number of strategies common across EBIs and countries which contributed to progress, either despite contextual barriers or by leveraging facilitators. The transferable knowledge from this cross-country study can be used by other countries to more effectively implement EBIs known to reduce amenable U5M and contribute to strengthening health system delivery now and in the future.

Ethical considerations in implementing generative AI for healthcare supply chain optimization: A cross-country analysis across India, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America

This review paper critically examines the ethical considerations involved in implementing generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare supply chain optimization across three distinct regions: India, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. The study synthesizes findings from various case studies and academic research to highlight both common and unique ethical challenges faced in these countries. Key themes such as data privacy, algorithmic transparency, and equitable access to AI-driven healthcare solutions are explored, alongside the unique socio-cultural, legal, and regulatory challenges specific to each region. The paper proposes a set of best practices for incorporating ethical considerations into the deployment of generative AI in healthcare. These include the development of inclusive ethical frameworks, regular ethical audits, comprehensive training and education programs, public engagement initiatives, and interdisciplinary collaboration. The paper also delves into future research directions and policy development, emphasizing the need to address healthcare disparities, adapt legal and regulatory frameworks, enhance generative AI explainability, and evaluate long-term outcomes.The study concludes by underscoring the importance of ethical design and deployment of generative AI systems in healthcare, advocating for a balanced approach that aligns technological advancements with ethical standards and global healthcare needs. This comprehensive review aims to contribute to the discourse on ethical generative AI implementation, offering insights and recommendations for policymakers, healthcare professionals, and generative AI developers to foster responsible and beneficial use of generative AI in healthcare globally.

Socio-economic development of tourist destinations: A cross-country analysis

The study aims to investigate the characteristics of socio-economic development in the context of countries’ tourism advancement. The paper analyzes the Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) and the Happiness Rating (HR). The sample covers data from 102 countries for the year 2021. The analysis showed that there are differences in the relationships between TTDI and HR, as well as their sub-indices, among groups of countries distributed according to income level. The research methodology includes the use of such methods as correlation analysis to determine the relationships between indicators like factor analysis to identify the degree of indicators' influence on the sample and a graphical method to visualise the analysis results. The study uses the World Bank approach to classify countries into income groups. The study confirms that a country's welfare level is one factor that determines patterns in various areas, including tourism.

Energy efficiency investment in a developing economy: financial development and debt status implication

PurposeThis study aims to assess financial development and debt status impact on energy efficiency in Nigeria as a developing economy.Design/methodology/approachThis study combined the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL), fully modified ordinary least squares and canonical cointegration regression analytical methods to estimate the parameters for energy efficiency policy recommendations. Secondary data between 1990 and 2020 were used for the analysis.FindingsThe result confirms the long-run nexus between energy efficiency, financial development and total debt stock. Furthermore, the ARDL estimates for this study’s key variables show that financial development promotes energy efficiency in the short run but hinders long-run energy efficiency. Total debt stock limits energy efficiency in Nigeria in short- and long-run periods.Research limitations/implicationsThe limitation of this study is that the scope is limited to Nigeria as a developing economy. The need to support energy efficiency projects is a global call requiring cross-country analysis. Despite this study’s focus on Nigeria, it provides useful insights that can guide energy efficiency policy through the financial sector and debt management.Practical implicationsThe financial sector must ensure the availability of long-term credit facilities to clean energy investors. The government must maintain a sustainable debt profile to pave the way for capital expenditure on clean energy projects that promote energy efficiency.Originality/valueThe environmental consequences of energy intensity are being felt globally, with the developing countries most vulnerable. The cheapest way to curb these consequences is to promote energy efficiency to reduce the disastrous effect. Driving energy efficiency requires investment in energy-efficient technology but the challenge for developing economies, i.e. Nigeria’s funding, remains challenging amid a blotted debt profile. This becomes crucial to investigate how financial sector development and debt management can accelerate energy-efficient investments in Nigeria.

Tone in politics is not systematically related to macro trends, ideology, or experience

What explains the variation in tone in politics? Different literatures argue that changes in the tone of politicians reflect changes in the economy, general language, well-being, or ideology. So far, these claims have been empirically tested only in isolation, in single country studies, or with a small subset of indicators. We offer an overarching view by modelling the use of tone in European national parliaments in 7 countries across 30 years. Using a semi-supervised sentiment-topic model to measure polarity and arousal in legislative debates, we show in a preregistered multiverse analysis that the tone in legislative debates is not systematically related to previously claimed factors. We also replicate the absence of such systematic relationships using national leader speeches and parties’ election manifestos. There is also no universal trend towards more negativity or emotionality in political language. Overall, our results highlight the importance of multi-lingual and cross-country multiverse analyses for generalizing findings on emotions in politics.