Technical Change Research Articles

Unveiling Urban Evolution: Assessing Patterns of Transformation in Guangzhou's Net Production

Urban evolution refers to the continuous changes and adaptation of urban environments to social, economic, technical, and environmental changes, acknowledging that cities are dynamic systems. Urbanization and land use/cover change (LULCC), which are mostly caused by human activity, which have a big impact on the environment. These two variables also affect urban vegetation when combined with climate change. We choose Guangzhou City to examine how urban growth processes and spatial changes in urban areas affect net production (NP). A Machine learning [ML] approach such as Support Vector Machine (SVM) was utilized to examine the relationship between NP and urbanization intensity. This study examined to analyze urban evolution, focusing on the patterns of change in the NP in Guangzhou City, China. The findings demonstrated between 2011 and 2023, the NP in the studied region decreased overall and had distinct geographic variation. The mean Urban Development Index (UDI) in Guangzhou increased significantly between 2011 and 2023. In both years, metropolitan exurbs constituted the majority of the urban geographic category, but the most notable increase in urban fringe areas, which accounted for about 2,320.24 km2 of the urban exurbs. Regarding UDI and NP, there was an opposite relationship, suggesting that the growing intensity of the growth of urban expansion negatively affected NP. Urban development intensity negatively influenced NP, with urban fringes experiencing the most significant losses due to an increase in urbanization and a decrease in agriculture.

How to improve fishery eco-efficiency by building marine ranch in China

Based on the panel data of the province and municipality in 2010–2021, this paper measures the fishery eco-efficiency by using the SBM-DEA model and empirically analyses how China’s marine ranch construction improves the fishery eco-efficiency by using the double-difference fixed-effect model. The results show that, firstly, China’s marine ranch construction can improve the fishery eco-efficiency. Secondly, China’s marine ranch construction promotes fisheries eco-efficiency by improving the input efficiency of labor, fish species, fishing vessel, fishery technology extension, aquaculture area and by reducing pollutant outputs. Thirdly, the fishery eco-efficiency of the marine ranch construction region has increased annually since 2015, and technological changes, scale efficiency changes and technical efficiency changes can all contribute to the fishery eco-efficiency improvement, and increase in order. Based on the results of the empirical analyses, this paper proposes policy recommendations to improve the fishery eco-efficiency in the conjunction with the construction of marine ranch in China.

ETHICAL LEADERSHIP IN FAMILY BUSINESS IN THE AGE OF DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

Family firms have long been a mainstay of the world economy because of their distinctive combination of custom, long-term vision, and close-knit ownership structures. But these well-established businesses face a difficult battle from the digital revolution. In order to be competitive, family companies need to embrace digital transformation as technology redefines customer behaviour and changes entire industries. The ethical leadership required for this transformation journey must strike a balance between the demands of a fast evolving digital landscape and the family's core values. Families-run enterprises, the foundation of many economies, are at a crossroads. The digital era, characterized by swift technical progress and changing customer needs, demands a change to guarantee their sustained prosperity. Family-owned businesses have particular difficulties as a result of this shift since they have to balance their enduring traditions and values with the needs of the digital age. It becomes clear that ethical leadership is essential for negotiating this challenging environment. It investigates the complex interrelationships among family companies, digital revolution, and ethical leadership. Family businesses, with its unique fusion of agility and tradition, find themselves at a turning point in the digital age. This shift calls for a fresh emphasis on ethical leadership and offers both opportunities and challenges. We look at how ethical decision-making in the digital sphere might be guided by fundamental family business principles. This entails dealing with concerns including cybersecurity, algorithmic bias, and data privacy. The study goes on to discuss tactics for guaranteeing accountability among all parties involved, encouraging openness, and cultivating an ethical culture within the family business. Family businesses may secure long-term sustainability, bolster their competitive advantage, and cultivate trust with clients and staff by employing ethical leadership in the digital era. Keywords: Family Business Management, Ethical Leadership, Family Business, Ethics, Digital Transformation, etc

Decentralization and immunization program in a single-party state: the case of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic

BackgroundThe Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), a lower-middle-income country, lags behind other Southeast Asian countries in immunization coverage for children under two years of age. The organization of health services is a key determinant of the functionality of immunization programs. However, this aspect, and in particular its decentralization component of the healthcare system, has never been studied.MethodsA case study in the Lao National Immunization Program was performed using a neo-institutional theory-based conceptual framework, highlighting the structure (rules, laws, resources, etc.) and interpretative schemes (dominant beliefs and ideas) that underlie the state of decentralization of the healthcare system that support the conduct of the immunization program. Twenty-two semi-structured interviews were conducted with representative actors from various government levels, external donors, and civil society, in four provinces. Data were complemented with information retrieved from relevant documents.ResultsThe Lao healthcare system has a deconcentrated form of decentralization. It has a largely centralized structure, albeit with certain measures promoting the decentralization of its immunization programs. The structure underlying the state of centralization of immunization services provided is coherent with a shared dominant interpretive scheme. However, the rapid economic, technical, and educational changes affecting the country suggest that the coherence between structure and interpretative schemes is bound to change.ConclusionUnprecedented opportunities to access quality higher education and the use of social networks are factors in Lao PDR that could affect the distribution of responsibilities of the different levels of government for public health programs such as the National Immunization Program.

Efficiency Analysis of Life Insurance Companies in Indonesia and Malaysia

This study focuses on measuring the performance of life insurance companies in Indonesia and Malaysia. Input oriented Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) uses panel data to extract the efficiency score of 5 life insurance companies from Indonesia and 5 life insurance companies from Malaysia for the year of 2015-2019. DEA-based Malmquist Total Factor Productivity (TFP) Index used to measure the efficiency change along the study period. This study utilizes asset and operating expenses as input variables, as for output variables, this study utilizes premium and investment income. Based on an efficiency score computed by DEA, most of the life insurance companies in both countries perform efficiently during the study period. However, life insurance companies in Indonesia still perform more efficiently than Malaysian life insurance companies. The results of the Malmquist TFP Index for life insurance companies in both countries show that there is 2.5% improvement in technical efficiency change, 1.5% deterioration in technology efficiency change, 0.6% improvement in pure efficiency change, 1.9% improvement on scale efficiency change, and 0.9% increase in TFP change. It shows that the main reason for TFP increased is due to improvement of technical efficiency change.

Labour market outcomes of the China shock in Australia

AbstractThis paper examines the effect of the rise in Chinese import competition on the Australian labour market from 1991 to 2007. Using the data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Labour Force Survey, I find three main results. First, the Chinese import competition generates net job gains for the economy at both aggregate and sectoral levels. The manufacturing and service sectors both experience a growth in employment due to the movements of workers between and within industries. Second, the job losses in manufacturing industries are accompanied by expansions in services industries. The Chinese import exposure reorganises the job allocations from manufacturing to services. Third, the industrial shifts and skill‐biased technical change caused by the Chinese imports bring about job polarisation. Estimates show evidence of job concentration on low‐skilled and high‐skilled workers while also a weakening focus on middle‐skilled occupations.

Technology Transfer in Global Value Chains

Global value chains create opportunities for North-South technology diffusion. This paper studies technology transfer in value chains when contracts are incomplete and input production technologies are imperfectly excludable. It introduces a new taxonomy of value chains based on whether the headquarters firm benefits from imitation of its supplier’s technology. In inclusive value chains, where imitation is beneficial, the headquarters firm promotes technology diffusion. But in exclusive value chains headquarters seek to limit supplier imitation. The paper analyzes how this distinction affects the returns to offshoring, the welfare effects of technical change, and the social efficiency of knowledge sharing. (JEL F16, J23, J24, J31)

A Framework for Economic Growth with Capital-Embodied Technical Change

Technological advance is often embodied in capital inputs, like computers, airplanes, and robots. This paper builds a framework where capital inputs advance through (i) increased automation and (ii) increased productivity. The interplay of these two innovation dimensions can produce balanced growth, satisfying the Uzawa Growth Theorem even though technological progress is capital-embodied. The framework can further address structural transformation, general-purpose technologies, the limited macroeconomic impact of computing, and declining productivity growth and labor shares. Overall, this tractable framework can help resolve puzzling tensions between micro-level observations of innovation and balanced growth while providing new perspectives on numerous macroeconomic phenomena. (JEL E22, E23, E24, E25, L16, O33, O41)

Perubahan dan Pengembangan Organisasi Sudut Pandang Manajemen Organisasi

Organizational Development is a long-term and comprehensive strategy to bring an organization to its highest functional level. Organizational Development focuses on changing employee attitudes, values and beliefs so that they are able to identify and implement technical changes for the betterment of the organization. This research uses qualitative research with the research results that Organizational Development is based on two important assumptions: Humans have a desire to develop and want to contribute to the organization. Organizational Development aims to remove obstacles within the organization that hinder employee development and contribution. Everyone can be accepted and recognized for their role in the group. Organizational Development fosters openness and interaction between group members to increase job satisfaction and group performance. It was concluded that the relationships between groups in an organization determine the effectiveness of each group. Organizational Development encourages interaction between group members to improve coordination and cooperation. Organizational Development is the key to delivering an organization to reach peak performance amidst dynamic change.

Forming professional reliability of railway power supply specialists

The high level of technological, technical, logistics, organizational and economic changes occurring in the railway industry determines the trajectory of development of professional training of specialists. The priority of safety issues in the context of the complex influence of occupational risks actualizes the scientific understanding of the problem associated with the substantiation of effective characteristics that allow one to withstand the cumulative influence of occupational risks, effectively develop in the professional community, maintaining a stable equilibrium state of the “man – technology – production environment” system. Analysis of research and methodological literature, experience of professional applied physical training at railway universities of the Russian Federation made it possible to identify areas of research aimed at bringing the indicators of psychophysical fitness of specialists into line with the conditions for the implementation of their professional activities. In the structure of professional competence of railway transport specialists, researchers highlight readiness for professional activity. At the same time, in today’s rapidly changing conditions of the professional world, it is necessary to form not only the current (basic) professionally significant qualities of a future specialist, but also to create conditions for the development of potential professional abilities, which will allow effectively confronting risk situations and ensuring the formation of self-regulation mechanisms. The quality that ensures the mobilization and activation of available funds, reserves, sources to achieve set goals, solve problems, and unlock opportunities in a certain area is reliability. In the article it is shown that convergence of play with learning determines the developmental effect of the game method. The complex nature of the gaming method allows to form indicators in the structure of professional reliability of railway power supply specialists.

A firm-specific Malmquist productivity index model for stochastic data envelopment analysis: an application to commercial banks

In the data envelopment analysis (DEA) literature, productivity change captured by the Malmquist productivity index, especially in terms of a deterministic environment and stochastic variability in inputs and outputs, has been somewhat ignored. Therefore, this study developed a firm-specific, DEA-based Malmquist index model to examine the efficiency and productivity change of banks in a stochastic environment. First, in order to estimate bank-specific efficiency, we employed a two-stage double bootstrap DEA procedure. Specifically, in the first stage, the technical efficiency scores of banks were calculated by the classic DEA model, while in the second stage, the double bootstrap DEA model was applied to determine the effect of the contextual variables on bank efficiency. Second, we applied a two-stage procedure for measuring productivity change in which the first stage included the estimation of stochastic technical efficiency and the second stage included the regression of the estimated efficiency scores on a set of explanatory variables that influence relative performance. Finally, an empirical investigation of the Iranian banking sector, consisting of 120 bank-year observations of 15 banks from 2014 to 2021, was performed to measure their efficiency and productivity change. Based on the findings, the explanatory variables (i.e., the nonperforming loan ratio and the number of branches) indicated an inverse relationship with stochastic technical efficiency and productivity change. The implication of the findings is that, in order to improve the efficiency and productivity of banks, it is important to optimize these factors.

The role of inefficiency in a productivity puzzle: Regional evidence for Great Britain

AbstractFrom around the 2008 crisis there has been a marked slowdown in UK productivity. This has been referred to as a productivity puzzle as there is no consensus on the key explanations for this slowdown. Using data for all the 168 International Territorial Level 3 areas in Great Britain (2004–2020), we make two empirical contributions to the literature on this puzzle. First, we are the first to analyze this productivity puzzle using a stochastic frontier model to account for technical inefficiency. Second, to aid policymakers we uncover the areas that represent spatial total factor productivity (TFP) growth hubs, spokes, leaders and followers. Of the components of TFP growth (growth rates of technical change, returns to scale and efficiency), we find that Britain's productivity slowdown can be more specifically described as a rise in inefficiency.

How constant is constant elasticity of substitution? Endogenous substitution between clean and dirty energy

The degree of substitutability between clean and dirty energy plays a central role in leading economic analyses of optimal environmental policy. Despite the importance, assuming a constant and exogenous elasticity of substitution has been a dominant theoretical approach. We challenge this assumption by developing a dynamic general equilibrium model with an endogenous elasticity of substitution that interacts with the relative share of clean inputs in the economy. We find strong dynamic feedback effects arising from endogenous substitution capacity that amplifies the impact of directed technical change and accelerates the transition to a green economy.

Electronic medical record redesign to improve patient safety and use of non-medication orders by clinicians

Background: Electronic medical records (EMRs) have become highly customizable. Although customization allows changes for workflow optimization, such changes can result in a less standardized system and create barriers due to individual preferences. Aim: This was a documentation of the efforts of a greenfield academic medical centre in Qatar to improve patient safety, physician operational efficiency and revenue capture by standardizing the design of the non-medication orders and associated revenue of the EMR . Methods: A multi-disciplinary group reviewed and revamped the design and workflow for non-medication orders, including redistributing orders into order catalogues, standardizing their naming, assigning them billing codes, and reviewing other order details. Measurement of project performance followed cross-sectional and prospective cohort designs. Results: The redesign improved clinicians’ satisfaction with the EMR and reduced patient safety incidents and other technical issues. Improvements in the organization’s operations and staff performance were noticeable across multiple areas. The proportion of clinicians finding it difficult to navigate and select orders reduced from 31% to 21%. The proportion of clinicians who believed the orders to be clear and accurate increased from about 16% to 31%. The estimated percentage of clinicians reporting a technical issue with an order during the last month reduced from 52% to 41.94%, and physicians’ dissatisfaction with the overall organization of non-medication orders in the EMR reduced from about 32% to 23%. The average number of technical issues and change requests sent monthly to the technology team for non-medication orders reduced from 30 to 1.4 technical issues and 3.2 change requests. Conclusion: EMR performance improvement projects that consider and address staff input, patient safety and performance metrics can uplift an organization’s clinical and financial performance.

Catalyzing communities of research rigour champions.

The biomedical sciences must maintain and enhance a research culture that prioritizes rigour and transparency. The US National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke convened a workshop entitled 'Catalyzing Communities of Research Rigor Champions' that brought together a diverse group of leaders in promoting research rigour and transparency (identified as 'rigour champions') to discuss strategies, barriers and resources for catalyzing technical, cultural and educational changes in the biomedical sciences. This article summarizes 2 days of panels and discussions and provides an overview of critical barriers to research rigour, perspectives behind reform initiatives and considerations for stakeholders across science. Additionally, we describe applications of network science to foster, maintain and expand cultural changes related to scientific rigour and opportunities to embed rigourous practices into didactic courses, training experiences and degree programme requirements. We hope this piece provides a primer for the wider research community on current discussions and actions and inspires individuals to build, join or expand collaborative networks within their own institutions that prioritize rigourous research practices.

The Euro Area 12: A Comparative Assessment of Its Member States in the Period 1998–2022

The primary objectives of this research are to compare the economic performance of the Member States (MS) in the Euro Area 12 (EA-12) of the European Union (EU) that served as net contributors and net recipients of its budget during the period 1998–2022. The comparison focuses on aspects related to economic growth and the business cycle, exploring the presence of hysteresis. To achieve these objectives, a novel approach is employed, which integrates the analysis of both growth and cycles. This approach involves using the Seemingly Unrelated Regression Equations (SURE) model to estimate a translog production frontier and assess the impact of lagging output gaps on the potential output or capacity for each of the MS considered. The data used to estimate each frontier and analyze growth decomposition consist of quarterly data filtered using the Kalman filter. The results reveal that lagging output gaps, occurring one or two quarters prior, significantly affect the potential output or capacity of the EA-12 MS, thereby supporting the existence of hysteresis. However, the impacts appear to be minimal. Furthermore, the research concludes that changes in total factor productivity (TFP), mainly due to technical change, play a more crucial role in the growth of MS that are net contributors to the EU budget. Conversely, total factor accumulation (TFA), mainly physical capital accumulation, has a more pronounced impact on the growth of MS net recipients from the EU budget. Interestingly, the heterogeneity observed among the EA-12 MS extends beyond the simple division between net contributors and net recipients of the EU budget. This heterogeneity raises questions about the European Central Bank’s (ECB) ability to stabilize the economies of these various MS solely through conventional monetary policy.

Analysis of Competency, Integrity, And Capability on The Performance Of Information System Based Budget Planning

Budget planning in the Regional Government financial system currently centers on an information system that is directly connected to the central information system in Jakarta. The accuracy of planning depends on the ability of the planning apparatus so that the circulation of money transfers from the Center to the Regions runs smoothly. The research aims to examine the competency, integrity and capability factors of budget planners in terms of using the available information systems properly so that the financial transfer process for the Region runs smoothly. Qualitative descriptive research. Data was obtained from structured, repeated and in-depth interviews with selected respondents who had been determined. The interview results were compiled using a weighting technique to obtain numerical figures on a scale of 1-10. The number of respondents was 115 people from budget planners and officials at the Regional Apparatus Organization of Fakfak Regency. Based on the weight results, a gap analysis can be carried out which is displayed using spider web analysis. The research results show that the competency, integrity and capability of budget planners must be continuously improved through education and training. This is based on the many technical changes in the use of information systems which budget planners must know and master at all times

Modelling economic development of an industrial metropolis

Current turbulence of external environment pushes the research towards exploring municipalities’ economic development. The purpose of the work is to devise a method for assessing the factors behind economic development of an industrial metropolis based on the construction of a production function. Theoretical propositions of macroeconomics and systems analysis constitute the methodological basis of the research. The main method is the construction of the Cobb–Douglas production function given autonomous Hicks-neutral technical change. The evidence is the data of the Federal State Statistics Service’s regional office of Chelyabinsk Region on the production output (volume of own production (works, service) shipped), cost of production assets, and payroll in the city of Chelyabinsk for 2014–2021, as well as price deflators. The model is formalised in the form of a computer program and is registered by the state, which reflects its practical value. The theoretical and methodological significance of the research consists in that for the first time in economic practice it demonstrates that individual elasticity coefficients can take negative values. The findings of the study can be used for forecasting the results of the interventions aimed at increasing the economic sustainability of an industrial metropolis.

How Sociotechnical Systems Adapt to Change

This paper addresses the topic of the dynamics of sociotechnical change of reproductive technologies and, in particular, the relationship between sociotechnical systems as described by TP Hughes and their environments. The co-production approach and sociotechnical imaginaries defined by S Jasanoff and SH Kim allow to explain the dynamics of technical change through the interweaving of technoscientific and social practices; and the concept of ‘reproductive imaginaries’ provides a better analysis of the back and forth adjustment between the system and its environment in a way that avoids the soft determinism that still persists in traditional accounts of sociotechnical change. I argue that reproductive technologies are co-produced with its environment in dialectical processes through specific technologies and reproductive imaginaries. Finally, I defend that this system performed adaptations even when it is mature.

Performance measurement of international shipping companies before and during COVID‐19: A DEA Malmquist index and window analysis approach

AbstractFor the past several decades, the container shipping industry has grown rapidly. As a result, container shipping companies (CSCs) play a vital role in the global cargo transportation market. Thus, measuring the efficiency of CSCs is a primary concern of managers and practitioners. When the COVID‐19 pandemic broke out, the industry was severely disrupted and presented with unprecedented challenges. For this reason, evaluating how CSCs performed and learning the practices they took to achieve successful business results during this period have become necessary. To serve that purpose, this article used a hybrid method that combined data envelopment analysis Malmquist index with window analysis to analyze the world's nine leading CSCs' performance over time and their efficiency relative to each other, using data collected within a 5‐year period from 2016 to 2020. Our findings revealed different characteristics and trends in efficiency among these CSCs in terms of technical efficiency change, technological change, and total productivity change. Then, managerial implications were discussed to understand the best practices of successful CSCs as well as the circumstances in which some of them underperformed during this time. In closing, the study summarized a fact‐based guideline CSCs could take as management reference should a similar crisis occur.