Human Capital Innovation Research Articles

Facilitator or figurehead? The impact of academician shareholder on corporate innovation: Evidence from China

Investment by academicians with resource advantages can serve as a vital channel for promoting innovation. In this study, we investigate whether and how academician shareholders who are esteemed fellows or candidates of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering impact corporate innovation. Using a sample from China, we document a positive association between academician shareholders and corporate innovation. Our channel analysis reveals four potential channels through which academician shareholders promote corporate innovation: innovative human capital, investor protection, top management team attention to innovation and reduction in innovation uncertainty. Moreover, in line with the resource-based view and incomplete contract theory, our findings indicate that the positive association is more pronounced in firms with directors appointed by academician shareholders, without state ownership, and with multiple large shareholders. Finally, our findings indicate that academician shareholders can enhance open innovation, attract government subsidies, shorten the time it takes for corporate patent applications to be granted, and improve firm performance.

The Spatial Impact of Innovative Human Capital on Green Total Factor Productivity in Chinese Regions Based on Quantity and Quality Dimensions

Green total factor productivity (GTFP) is a key driver of China’s green development, and innovative human capital (IHC) plays a pivotal role in enhancing GTFP. This study examines the impact of the quantity and quality dimensions of IHC on regional GTFP in China. Using panel data from 30 Chinese provinces from 2004 to 2018, this study constructs a spatial Durbin model (SDM) to empirically analyze the role of IHC in regional GTFP. Three main conclusions are obtained: (1) both the quantity and quality of IHC can significantly and directly improve regional GTFP, yet regional heterogeneity exists. In the eastern region, both IHCA and IHCQ have a significant impact, while in the middle-western region, only IHCA has a significant effect on GTFP; (2) IHC can boost the enhancement of regional GTFP through technological progress; and (3) the quantity of IHC (IHCA) produces a spatial spillover effect on regional GTFP, whereas the quality of IHC (IHCQ) does not exhibit this effect. Based on these conclusions, strategies for the green development of China and the coordinated development of the eastern and middle-western regions are proposed. The Chinese government should integrate IHC development into its environmental policies to improve environmental awareness and optimize the efficiency of human capital, taking regional differences into account.

Patterns of innovation-driven tourism competitiveness: Insights from 270 Chinese cities

This paper utilizes innovation ecosystem theory to examine how an innovation ecosystem (comprising economic, technological, labor, and institutional subsystems) promotes tourism competitiveness through internal interaction. Employing fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis and necessary condition analysis techniques, this study assesses the necessity and sufficiency of an innovation ecosystem for high tourism competitiveness. Findings demonstrate that industrial structure and human capital innovations are requisite for tourism competitiveness, with the former being more universally applicable. Further, this study identifies an earlier innovation-driven mechanism for superior tourism competitiveness: leveraging industrial structure and human capital, and four contemporary innovation-driven mechanisms: leveraging industrial structure, leveraging policy, leveraging technology, and leveraging industrial structure and wages. The rationalization of industrial structure and human capital enhancement serve distinct bottleneck roles. This article contributes to understanding the link between innovation ecosystems and tourism and similarly suggests approaches for enhancing tourism competitiveness through innovation system development.

The impact of innovative human capital on green growth convergence in China's regions from the perspective of space

The convergence of green growth is not only very important for the sustainable development of mankind, but also plays a key role in the coordinated development of eastern, Midwest regions of China. The effect of innovative human capital (IHC) on the convergence of regional green growth in China needs to be explored. This paper empirically explores the impact of IHC on the convergence of regional green growth in China from spatial perspective for the first time. Through the regression analysis of the convergence models, three main conclusions are obtained: (1) there are obvious conditional β space convergence characteristics of green growth among inter-provincial units in China. Under the spatial correlation expressed by distance weights and adjacent weights, the conditional β space convergence characteristics of green growth are quite different. (2) Compared with the adjacency weight, under the distance weight, the spatial diffusion effect of innovative knowledge and technologies created by IHC is stronger. (3) There is club convergence of green growth in the East and the Midwest regions, and the quantity and quality of IHC in the Midwest region play a stronger role in the convergence of green growth than in the East region. Based on the above conclusions, this paper proposes some policies for the East and Midwest regions.

Technical efficiency in the Malaysian electric and electronic manufacturing industry: A stochastic frontier analysis approach

This study measured the level of technical efficiency (TE) that exerted a significant impact on the Malaysian electric and electronic manufacturing industry, which consists of 13 sub-industries, from 2010 to 2015. Unbalanced panel data from 1880 firms was obtained from the Department of Statistics Malaysia. We used stochastic frontier (SFA) analysis with the transcendental logarithmic approach to estimate the empirical analysis parametric. The maximum likelihood estimated regression of the SFA parameters revealed a high total average TE of 0.944%. Both the manufacturing sub-industries for communications equipment (MSIC 263) and irradiation, electromedical, and electrotherapeutic equipment (MSIC 266) demonstrated the highest average TE value and consistency (0.989%). The consumer electronics manufacturing sub-industry (MSIC 264) yielded a notably lower TE level (0.846%). Changes in TE for all industries were monitored via standard deviation analysis. The low standard deviation (SD) for MSIC 263, 271, and 275 indicated continuous progress and demands for these industries, while the higher SD for MSIC 264, 266, 272, and 273 pointed out major changes that happened within the period. The findings demonstrated that studies on the TE levels indicate that the E&E manufacturing industry has highly expended and continuous efforts to update technologies and human capital innovations. Therefore, the practical implication is to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 9 for sustainable industrialization and fostering innovation by 2030.

Can environmental protection tax force enterprises to improve green technology innovation?

The introduction of an environmental protection tax enables a smooth shift from the sewerage charge system to the environmental protection tax scheme. This, in turn, promotes a more sustainable development of enterprise growth, emphasizing eco-friendliness. This is of immense importance in advancing environmentally aware practices and sustainability. Based on data collected from A-share listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen from 2014 to 2021, this paper investigates the influence of environmental protection taxes on the advancement of green technology and the underlying mechanisms. Taking the execution of the Environmental Protection Tax Law in 2018 as a quasi-natural experiment, a double-difference model is employed to examine the causal relationship between environmental protection taxes and the adoption of green technology by companies. The findings indicate that the introduction of an environmental tax could markedly enhance the extent of green technological innovation within corporations. The evidence arising from the testing mechanism implies that such a tax can encourage firms to boost their investments in research and development, upgrade their innovative human capital, and mitigate financing limitations. The study found that there is heterogeneity in the promotion effect of the environmental protection tax on the green technological innovation of businesses in different regions and provinces with varying tax burdens and types of equity capital. Further research shows that the environmental protection tax has a greater impact on the promotion of utility model patent applications for green technology innovation. This paper presents empirical evidence to support further enhancement of the environmental protection tax system. It recommends designing the environmental protection tax policy with consideration for enterprises and local conditions and bolstering the system's capacity for guiding and stimulating enterprises' green development.

A study of the impact of the digital economy on inclusive green total factor productivity-Mediated by innovative human capital

A study of the impact of the digital economy on inclusive green total factor productivity-Mediated by innovative human capital

Exploring the Promotion Mechanism of Innovative Human Capital Flows for Sustainable Economic Growth in China Based on Machine Learning Perspective

Abstract Under the situation of China’s economic development, the sustainability of innovative human capital flows on economic growth is closely related to the state of future economic growth. Based on the analysis of innovative human capital flows, the article measured the stock of human capital flows by combining the expenditure method and also measured the quality index of China’s sustainable economic growth by using the PPM-RAGA model. Based on the data from 30 provinces and cities in China from 2012 to 2022, a spatial econometric model was designed to analyze the impact mechanism of innovative human capital flows on China’s sustainable economic growth and a spatial autocorrelation test was carried out. There was a significant difference in the overall flow of innovative human capital from 2012 to 2022, and the quality index of sustainable economic growth increased from 1.812 to 2.137, with the quality index of sustainable economic growth increases from 1.812 to 2.137, with an increase of 17.94%. There is an obvious global spatial autocorrelation of sustainable economic growth, and every 1% increase in the flow of innovative human capital leads to 0.141% sustainable economic growth in China. The flow of innovative human capital not only promotes the economic growth of the region but also leads to knowledge and technology spillovers that promote the economic growth of neighboring regions.

The impact of green credit on economic development quality: the mediating effect of enterprise innovation.

Implementing green credit is a crucial step for nations looking to control social capital flows, improve environmental governance, and foster high-quality economic development in the context of the global low-carbon transition. This study analyzes the effects of green credit policy on high-quality economic development (HQED) from the perspective of enterprise innovation using panel data from 30 Chinese provinces. The data is from the period between 2011 and 2020. We use the benchmark regression and mediation effect models to analyze the relationship between green credit and HQED. The research results show that (1) green credit can directly and significantly raise the HQED. (2) Enterprise innovation mediates the relationship between green credit and HQED. Green credit can promote HQED through enterprise technical innovation, human capital innovation, stock market innovation, and incremental market innovation. (3) The most apparent mediating influence in enterprise innovation is played by human capital innovation. Our research provides policy implications for governments, banks, and enterprises to promote green transformation and achieve simultaneous economic and environmental development.

Evaluating the link between innovative human capital and regional sustainable development: Empirical evidence from China.

Innovative human capital (IHC) can boost the economic growth of nations. However, in recent years, economies have become more attuned to sustainable development. In this context, it is important to assess the potential impact of IHC on green growth. Against this background, this study empirically examines the role of IHC on regional green growth in China, considering the spatial spillover effect and focusing on the quantity and quality of human capital and its direct and indirect effects on green growth. To this end, this paper adopts the spatial Durbin model, constructs an indicator system to evaluate green growth, and establishes a calculation formula for the quantity and quality of IHC. The empirical analysis provided some important findings. First, IHC and green growth have strong spatial correlation characteristics. Second, the quantity of IHC has a significant positive impact on regional green growth; however, the quality of IHC does not promote regional green growth. Third, the quantity and quality of IHC indirectly improve the level of regional green growth through technological progress. Finally, the role of IHC and its spatial spillover effect in improving the regional green growth level are most obvious in the central and western regions of China. Therefore, promoting green growth requires enhancing the accumulation of IHC and narrowing the gap between eastern and western China in the accumulation of IHC.

Research on digital intelligence business model based on artificial intelligence in post-epidemic era

PurposeThe 21st century has brought the business model earth-shaking changes, especially since the Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) epidemic at the end of 2019. Now, the epidemic normalization is slowing down China's rapid development. However, technological development, like artificial intelligence (AI), is unstoppable and is transforming China's economic growth modes from factor-driven to innovation-driven systems. Therefore, it is necessary to study further the new changes in labor entrepreneurship and innovation business models and their mechanism of action on economic growth.Design/methodology/approachThis work studies how innovative human capital (IHC) uses AI and other scientific and technological (S&T) innovation technologies to promote China's innovation-driven economic growth model transformation from the labor entrepreneurship and innovation perspective.FindingsThe research shows that the entrepreneurial innovation ability of IHC can increase marginal return and output multiplier effect. It changes the traditional business model and promotes China's economic growth and innovation development. At the same time, this work analyzes China's inter-provincial panel data through the panel smooth transition regression (PSTR) model. It concludes that there is a nonlinear relationship between IHC and the output of innovative achievements. The main body presents three stages of nonlinear changes: first rising, then slightly declining, and rising so far.Originality/valueThe finding provides a direction for solving the problem of slow economic growth and accelerating the transformation of economic growth mode under epidemic normalization.

The imbalance of the labor market in Ukraine: current trends and guidelines for overcoming disproportions

The imbalance of the labor market in Ukraine: current trends and guidelines for overcoming disproportions

Exploring the impact of human capital development and environmental regulations on green innovation efficiency.

Following a consensus among world leaders at COP26 and COP27, every country is trying to deal with environmental issues. In this context, the role of green innovation efficiency is crucial, as it can positively drive the environmental efforts of a country. However, past research has ignored the methods through which a country can drive green innovation efficiency. To address this research gap, this work selected data from 2007 to 2021 in China, measured the green innovation efficiency (GIE) of each province, and constructed a systematic GMM model to analyze the role of environmental regulation policy and human capital on GIE. The findings of the study are as follows. (1) The overall GIE in China is 0.537, which is still at a low efficiency level, and high efficiency is mainly concentrated in the eastern region, while the western region has the lowest level of GIE. (2) The relationship between environmental regulations and GIE in the whole country and in the eastern, central, and western regions is shown to be "U" shaped. The regression coefficient of human capital on GIE is found to be positive, but there is regional variation, which is not significant in the western region and shows a significant positive correlation in other regions. (3) There is regional heterogeneity in FDI's impact on GIE; the results in the eastern region are consistent with the national results, which can promote GIE, but not significantly in the central and western regions; marketization can improve GIE in the national and eastern regions, but is not significant in the central and western regions; scientific and technological innovation can promote GIE except in the central region; and economic development can improve GIE in all regions. Studying the impact of environmental regulation and human capital development on the efficiency of green innovation and realizing the coordinated development of the environment and economy under institutional innovation and human capital innovation is of great significance for the development of China's low-carbon economy and has important reference value for accelerating sustainable economic development.

Impact of Graduate Student Expansion and Innovative Human Capital on Green Total Factor Productivity

Using data from 30 provinces and cities in China from 2005–2018, panel regression models, mediation models, quantile regressions and threshold regressions were used to examine the relationship between graduate student size expansion, innovative human capital and green total factor productivity (GTFP) and analyze the influence mechanisms and heterogeneity among them. The results of the study are as follows: First, graduate student expansion and innovative human capital are the driving force for GTFP growth in China, and graduate student size expansion indirectly boosts GTFP by promoting the supply of innovative human capital, with a 73% mediating effect. Second, the effects of graduate student expansion and innovative human capital on GTFP show a trend of diminishing marginal benefits, and the estimated coefficient of the effect of graduate student scale share on GTFP has an inverted U-shaped relationship. Third, there is a significant threshold feature of industrial structure upgrading in the influence of graduate student scale expansion on GTFP. The study makes suggestions in terms of expanding of the graduate students, rationalizing the enrollment structure of universities, optimizing the regional industrial structure and creating a social innovation environment.

Exploring the wicked problem dilemmas and driving mechanism of green transition: Evidence from the Yellow River Basin, China

The green transition of the Yellow River Basin (YRB) plays an important role in China’s economic and social development, as well as its ecological security. In view of the wicked problem dilemmas of development and emissions reduction in the YRB, this study theoretically and empirically examines the driving forces of its green transition. A six-sector green endogenous growth model reveals that low-carbon governance and innovation activities are the main drivers of green transition. Subsequently, a panel econometric model empirically explores how these drivers can solve the challenges of green transition. The findings are summarized as follows: low-carbon governance and innovative human and physical capital are key elements of green transition. The investment and innovation-driven periods regression results confirm that these elements drive green transition in the latter period. The regional heterogeneity show that drivers can promote green transition in highly developed areas. At the same time, with the inflow of innovative human capital, the promotion of low-carbon governance and innovative human capital to green transition has increased to an extent. Hence, combining the urban development stage and level to avoid a uniform policy may be key to the green transition in the YRB.

Influence of innovative human capital on economic development of China through the STI model

Abstract With the continuous progress of the times, innovation is the first driving force of development, and human capital is the carrier of innovation ability. Innovative human capital plays an important role in China’s economic development and enhancing its competitiveness. By selecting physical capital, labor input and innovative human capital input, and establishing an RBM-STI function model, the impact of innovative human capital on China’s economic development is calculated. The results show that innovative human capital has a significant role in promoting the contribution rate of economic development. And in the 2021-2022 stage, the growth rate of innovative human capital input and output is the largest, at 81.9%, while the growth rate of physical capital input and output is only 26.3%. It shows that although the role of physical capital in promoting economic development is not as obvious as that of innovative human capital, it is still the backbone of promoting economic development. The lowest contribution rate to economic growth in China’s provinces and cities is the labor input, which accounts for only 9.6% in the 2021-2022 period.

Research on innovative human capital for China’s economic development based on STI model

Abstract The study uses a modified Kalman filter to analyse the impact of innovative human capital’s contribution to China’s economic development. The Kalman filter-STI model is used, and the growth rates of labour force, physical capital and innovative human capital and their contributions to economic growth are further calculated. The analysis employing the Kalman filter-STI model leads to the following results: In 2015, the sum of innovative human capital in each region increased by 6.15% compared to 2010. From 2005 to 2021, the number of scientific and technical papers included in three international systems in China decreased from 45% to 31% in Beijing, from 34% to 21% in Shanghai, and decreased in Jilin and Gansu. Jiangsu Province is the province with the largest increase in the share, from 13% to 26%.

The Impact of Ambidextrous Innovation Human Capital on the Technological Innovation Efficiency and Stage Efficiency of Big Data Enterprises

Based on a resource-based view, we explore the relationship between ambidextrous innovation human capital and the efficiency of technological innovation and its stage efficiency in big data enterprises. We divide their technological innovation into two stages: technological development and the commercialization of technological achievements. For a more reasonable efficiency measurement, we construct an efficiency evaluation index system based on the entropy value method (EVM) and the analytical hierarchy process (AHP), and we measure and evaluate their technological innovation efficiency from both static and dynamic perspectives. We conduct an empirical analysis with a sample of Chinese big data listed companies from 2014–2017. After regression analysis and its robustness test, we find that ambidextrous innovation human capital has a significant impact on the technological innovation efficiency of big data enterprises, that incremental innovation human capital and radical innovation human capital have opposite impact relationships in the technological development stage and that radical innovation human capital may have a more significant economic significance on the efficiency of commercializing technological achievements of big data enterprises. In the course of our analysis, we also find some other relevant findings. Finally, we formulate some relevant management suggestions.

Research on the impact mechanism of environmental regulation on green total factor productivity from the perspective of innovative human capital.

Green total factor productivity (GTFP) improvement is an important way to achieve sustainable development, and how to improve GTFP has become the focus of attention of governments and scholars. This paper constructs a GTFP evaluation index system to characterize social, economic, ecological, cultural, and politically sustainable development, and analyzes the impact of environmental regulations on GTFP in the context of increasing innovative labor force. The results of the study are as follows: Firstly, China's GTFP continues to improve, with a decrease in low-value provinces and an increase in high-value provinces; there is an agglomeration effect of GTFP in the eastern and western regions. Secondly, under the role of innovative human capital, the threshold effect of China and the eastern and western regions is significantly positive in the first stage and insignificant in the second stage. The threshold effect of the central region is not significant in the first stage, but significantly negative in the second stage (- 11.650); the effect of environmental regulation in the eastern region is the strongest. Thirdly, the control variables in the upper period GTFP, national and eastern R&D investment, level of foreign openness, local fiscal expenditure, central and western information construction, western tertiary industry development, urbanization, foreign direct investment, level of foreign openness, and local fiscal expenditure can increase GTFP. In this regard, the government should adhere to innovative talent cultivation and investment in science and technology to build a talent ecological environment for regional sustainable development, adjust environmental regulations in time to meet the demand for sustainable development to realize the GTFP regional linkage enhancement.

Embedding in Global Value Chains, Innovative Human Capital and China’s Manufacturing Upgrades

Since the reform and opening up, China has actively participated in the Global Value Chain (GVC) division of labor system and achieved rapid economic growth and moderate industrial upgrading. However, with the rapid development of GVC, more and more countries are participating in the global competition, and China’s manufacturing industry is facing the serious challenge of “two-way squeeze” from the return of high-end and low-end transfer. This paper constructs a theoretical framework of GVC embedding and innovative human capital accumulation affecting manufacturing upgrading, and empirically examines the impact of GVC embedding location enhancement and innovative human capital accumulation on manufacturing upgrading from the perspective of product upgrading and efficiency upgrading. The findings show that innovative human capital accumulation enhances the positive effect of GVC embedding on product upgrading and efficiency upgrading. The extent of this effect varies across types of industries; for product upgrading, the positive regulating effect of innovative human capital on the positive relationship between embedded location and China’s manufacturing upgrading is most pronounced in labor-intensive industries; for efficiency upgrading, innovative human capital plays a more significant positive regulating effect in capital-intensive and technology-intensive industries. Based on the above conclusions, the Chinese government should strengthen diversified investment in high-level talents and invest in the expansion of cooperative learning platforms in the upper, middle and lower reaches of the global value chain manufacturing industry, establish and improve relevant laws and regulations on intellectual property protection and transformation of innovation results, and solve the problem of deviation of talents from optimal allocation, so as to better exert the regulating effect of innovative human capital and promote the upgrading of China's manufacturing industry.