This paper aims to explain the empirical relationship between competitiveness and economic growth in a globalizing world. In recent times, the advanced economies have experienced…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explain the empirical relationship between competitiveness and economic growth in a globalizing world. In recent times, the advanced economies have experienced a slowdown of growth, whereas the BRICS countries continue to experience high growth. The authors explore the following question: Does competitiveness of nations’ degree of competition explains this differential in growth? The authors explore competiveness and growth in a macroeconomic perspective for the large economies in the OECD and BRICS countries.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors use dynamic panel data modelling technique to find the relationship between competitiveness and economic growth. This technique enables to control heterogeneity problem of this group to some extent. The focus variable of this study is annual GDP growth rate for the period 2007-2017. The proxies for measuring competitiveness in this paper are trade as percentage of GDP, product market regulation, unit labour cost and global competitive index. Innovation prevalence of foreign ownership, efficiency, competition, state of cluster development, venture capital availability, extent of market, research and development expenditure as percentage of the GDP mergers and acquisitions and multifactor productivity are the control variables.
Findings
The authors find that the degree of competitiveness competition is less likely to impact economic growth in the OECD countries because they have more or less similar competitive environment. Innovation, extent of market and state of cluster development and venture capital availability explaining growth differential. Increased competition is likely to affect growth negatively. This explains the oligopolistic structures of the world economy. However, the BRICS countries vary significantly in competitive environment. This is the reason of volatility in their growth. The conclusion is that competitiveness is important for sustained growth. Competitiveness is, however, an outcome of a set of policies, not a policy itself.
Research limitations/implications
Productivity data for OECD and BRICS countries are not available. Various series are not comparable. OECD countries have discontinued yearly unit labour cost series, and high frequency series are available but no such series for BRICS exists.
Practical implications
First, this paper proposes that wage growth, measured by the unit labour cost growth rate, is an important determinant of competitiveness amongst the nations. Wage growth is falling short of productivity growth in the OECD countries. This has implications for the long run sustainability of growth, skill development and inequalities in the region. Since 2011, world economic recovery is slow. Wage growth is imperative for generating sufficient private demand in the OECD countries. Second, this paper provides evidence that competitiveness is important for explaining growth in the OECD and the BRICS countries. However, it also highlights that competitiveness can be measured effectively by the trade differential or with the help of unit labour cost. Unaligned real effective exchange rate in terms of unit labour costs is the real cause of the problem.
Originality/value
Research in this area is still in infancy. This research finds that how competitiveness affects growth. A more competitive nation can sell more, but not necessarily grow rapidly. In development process, growth comes first, and at the latter stages, countries have to introduce effective reforms for competitiveness. This is the effect of competitiveness on growth by comparing various indexes.
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Linda Putri Nadia and Mamduh M. Hanafi
This study aims to examine the influence of board gender diversity on dividend policy and cash holdings in several emerging economies. This study also investigates the nonlinear…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the influence of board gender diversity on dividend policy and cash holdings in several emerging economies. This study also investigates the nonlinear impact of women on dividend policy and cash holdings and the differences between countries with one- and two-tier board systems.
Design/methodology/approach
The sample includes 103 firms listed in the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. The data represent all industries except the financial industry. The sample period is the 10 financial years from 2010 to 2019. This study analyzed unbalanced panel data with fixed effect specifications for baseline model analysis.
Findings
This study finds robust evidence indicating that women’s presence negatively influences dividends and positively influences cash holdings. The findings in the additional analysis are significant and show a nonlinear relationship, supporting the substitution hypothesis.
Practical implications
The findings of this paper certainly provided a valuable contribution as a useful empirical guide for policy decision-makers in developing countries, regulators and corporate decision-makers related to board gender diversity. Developed countries have implemented a minimum quota of women boards in the composition of the board of directors. However, there are still few developing countries that implement these policies. Women can reflect or show their values in corporate governance, such as being careful in making decisions and being conservative about risk. These guides policymakers in implementing a minimum quota of women in the composition of the board of directors.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the debate on the impact of gender diversity on dividends and cash holdings, especially in ASEAN emerging economies because there is a notable empirical gap relative to developed countries. Moreover, this study contributes to the necessary nuanced understanding of the substitution hypothesis in emerging economies. The results also support the explanation of critical mass theory to account for the nonlinear relationship between the number of women board members and dividends and cash holdings.
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Ibtissem Jilani, Faten Lakhal and Nadia Lakhal
This paper aims to examine the impact of gender diversity on boards and on top management positions on excess cash holdings.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the impact of gender diversity on boards and on top management positions on excess cash holdings.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors adopt the quantile regression approach to test the relation between gender diversity and excess cash holding. The sample consists of 1,235 firm-year observations for the period 2005–2017.
Findings
The authors find that board gender diversity negatively influences the level of excess cash. This result suggests that women appointed in the boardroom are effective in monitoring managerial actions, including financing policies. The results also show that by forcing companies to have a quota of women on their boards, the presence of women no longer has a negative impact on excess cash holdings. However, when women stand at the chief executive officer or chief financial officer position, they tend to accumulate cash for precautionary motives. These results suggest that women behave differently regarding excess cash holding as monitors compared to their role as decision-makers.
Practical implications
The results may be of interest to legislators who may decide to break the glass ceiling, preventing women from gaining greater access to senior management positions. This is in line with the recommendations of the AFEP-MEDEF Governance Code of 2020, which strongly recommends the recruitment of women to senior management positions. The results are also important to investors, who might be likely to trust companies in which women hold positions on boards of directors which may increase firm value. The results may also have a social impact. Indeed, the role of women in society may be enhanced if such initiatives are taken to increase their representation on leadership positions and in society in general.
Social implications
The results may also have a social impact. Indeed, the role of women in society may be enhanced if such initiatives are taken to increase their representation on leadership positions and in society in general.
Originality/value
This study investigates the role of women both as controllers and decision-makers in holding excessive amounts of cash. It also highlights new evidence on the impact the approach of appointing women on boards (enabling/coercive and market-based) can have on the relation between gender diversity and excess cash holdings.
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Sobia Nasir, Nadia Nasir, Shabnam Khan, Waqas Khan and Server Sevil Akyürek
The study aims to describe the impact of supervisor’s and co-worker’s ostracism on the employee's responses (emotional, psychological and behavioral) through the mediation of…
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to describe the impact of supervisor’s and co-worker’s ostracism on the employee's responses (emotional, psychological and behavioral) through the mediation of employees' efficacy needs and relational needs. Moreover, psychological capital is treated as a moderator to handle the adverse responses of ostracized employees.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employed a three-wave quantitative research design to gather data from employees and their respective supervisors who belonged to various healthcare units (N = 510) using self-administered close-ended questionnaires. After that, SmartPLS software was used to analyze the data through a structured equation modeling (SEM) technique.
Findings
The empirical results of the study endorsed that ostracism adversely (negatively) affects employees' responses (comprised of emotional, behavioral and psychological). Moreover, the results revealed that employees' needs (efficacy and relational) mediate the relationship between ostracism experienced by employees (supervisor’ and co-workers’ ostracism) and their emotional, behavioral and psychological responses. In addition, it is also evidenced that employees' psychological capital improves the negative association between employees' needs and responses.
Originality/value
The literature in this domain is scarce, and the theoretical stance is weak due to the traditional approaches that are more concerned with the outcomes rather than analyzing the employee's conditional what they are going through. The present study enhances the knowledge of the transactional mode of coping and its application to ostracism in the workplace. The results of the current study may also support the practitioners in formulating interventions to foster a favorable workplace environment.
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Nadia Saeed and Moustafa Omar Ahmed Abu-Shawiesh
The purpose of the study would typically involve investigating how the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the learning abilities of university students. The study could…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the study would typically involve investigating how the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the learning abilities of university students. The study could encompass various factors that may influence students' ability to learn, such as their academic performance, motivation, engagement, mental health, access to resources and learning environment.
Design/methodology/approach
1. A cross-sectional design, collecting data at a specific point in time to capture the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on students' learning abilities. 2. A structured questionnaire will be developed based on relevant literature and research objectives. 3. The questionnaire could be administered to the targeted sample of university students through online surveys, email or other appropriate methods. 4. Descriptive statistics could be used to summarize the demographic characteristics and other relevant variables of the sample. Factor analysis could be performed to identify underlying factors. The Mann–Whitney test, a non-parametric test, could be used to compare the differences between groups.
Findings
The results of the data analysis would be interpreted and discussed in the context of the research objectives and relevant literature. The findings could provide insights into the factors that significantly affect learning abilities during the COVID-19 pandemic and highlight any differences among groups. Limitations of the study, such as sample size or potential biases, would also be discussed.
Originality/value
The study would provide a comprehensive overview of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on university students' learning abilities, highlight the existing literature in the field and establish the need for further research to investigate the factors influencing students' learning abilities during the pandemic. The study can provide a solid framework for similar studies.
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Sharfizie Mohd Sharip, Marinah Awang and Ramlee Ismail
This study aims to extend the investigation on leader communication by assessing the usage of motivating language (ML) by leaders in Waqf institutions in Malaysia.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to extend the investigation on leader communication by assessing the usage of motivating language (ML) by leaders in Waqf institutions in Malaysia.
Design/methodology/approach
Data analysis was carried out using structural equation modelling via the partial least squares. The probability sampling technique was deemed more suitable for this study as the available data was definable for constructing the sampling frame.
Findings
Management effectiveness was shown to have a significant effect on direction-giving and meaning-making language (MML), but not on empathetic language (EL). The findings demonstrate that increasing use of directive and MML leads to greater management performance; however, increased use of EL has no such effect.
Research limitations/implications
The findings should not be taken as a comprehensive solution for improving the management effectiveness of all Waqf institutions. As the study only focused on the aspect of leader communication in Waqf institutions, the findings cannot be generalized to other contexts. Additionally, this study had only examined religious-based non-profit organizations (NPOs) with affiliations to a religious body, mission statements that incorporate religious values, financial support from religious sources and governance structure and employee selection based on religious processes. Hence, the findings cannot be used as a reference in the context of non-religious NPOs.
Practical implications
This paper contributes to the theoretical enhancement of existing literature about leader communication towards improving institutional effectiveness. The current study has empirically tested the model through the integration of the ML theory. Thus, the leader’s choice of language improves employee motivation and ultimately institutional productivity and effectiveness.
Originality/value
There is a glaring gap in empirical studies on the relationship between ML usage by leaders and management effectiveness specifically in the context of Malaysian organizations. Based on rigorous searches using the Scopus and Web of Sciences databases, it was found that past studies investigating the said relationship had focused more on Western countries. This is a crucial gap that must be addressed to gain a deeper understanding of the effect of ML on management effectiveness, especially in the Malaysian setting.
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Mohammad Rabiul Basher Rubel, Daisy Mui Hung Kee and Nadia Newaz Rimi
The purpose of this study intends to examine the influence of green human resource management (GHRM) on green service behaviors through the mediating effect of green knowledge…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study intends to examine the influence of green human resource management (GHRM) on green service behaviors through the mediating effect of green knowledge sharing based on bank employees' perceptions.
Design/methodology/approach
The study analyzes 365 frontline employees' perceptions from the banking industry in Bangladesh using partial least square.
Findings
The findings show a significant positive direct influence of GHRM on green in-role, extra-role service behavior and green knowledge sharing. Green knowledge sharing is also found to have a significant mediating effect between GHRM and green service behaviors.
Research limitations/implications
This study considers perceptions of employees of the private commercial banking organizations, and thereby, its findings cannot be generalized for all other service organizations in the context of Bangladesh.
Practical implications
The study demonstrates that GHRM can influence employees' green service behaviors via green knowledge sharing.
Originality/value
Green banking is an emerging trend that deserves more attention. There is growing recognition that green banking is not an “automatic” process but requires that banking management promote green service behavior among their employees. This study extends the research on GHRM by focusing on how it impacts green service behavior through the mediating role of green knowledge sharing. The paper provides practical insights for organizations looking to improve green service behaviors among employees.
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Brinda Sree Tamilarasan and Kavitha Ramasamy
The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive overview of sustainable fashion consumption from a consumer behavior perspective, combining scientometric analysis and the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive overview of sustainable fashion consumption from a consumer behavior perspective, combining scientometric analysis and the SPAR-4-SLR protocol to identify trends, key contributors and research gaps in the field.
Design/methodology/approach
The study analyzes 114 articles published between 2014 and 2024, sourced from the Scopus database. A hybrid approach is used, employing VOSviewer and Rstudio for quantitative analysis, along with the theory-context-characteristics-methodology framework to systematically review constructs, theories, contexts and methodologies in the selected articles.
Findings
The findings highlight critical insights into consumer behavior regarding sustainable fashion and identify gaps in the literature. The study also provides performance indicators, including publication trends and citation metrics, visualized through tables and maps. It offers practical guidance for businesses and policymakers to promote sustainable consumption practices.
Originality/value
This research contributes to the field by integrating scientometric and systematic review methods, providing a novel approach to understanding sustainable fashion consumption. It also suggests future research directions and explores how benchmarking techniques can enhance consumer engagement and sustainability strategies.
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Sneha Patil, Mahesh Goudar and Ravindra Kharadkar
For decades, continuous research work is going on to maximize the power harvested from the sun; however, there is only a limited analysis on exploiting the microwatt output power…
Abstract
Purpose
For decades, continuous research work is going on to maximize the power harvested from the sun; however, there is only a limited analysis on exploiting the microwatt output power from indoor lightings. Microelectronic system has power demand in the µW range, and therefore, indoor photovoltaics would be appropriate for micro-energy harvesting appliances. “Energy harvesting is defined as the transfer process by which energy source is acquired from the ambient energy, stored in energy storage element and powered to the target systems”. The theory of energy harvesting is: gathering energy from surroundings and offering technological solutions such as solar energy harvesting, wind energy collection and vibration energy harvesting. “The solar cell or photovoltaic cell (PV), is a device that converts light into electric current using the photoelectric effect”. Factors such as light source, temperature, circuit connection, light intensity, angle and height can manipulate the functions of PV cells. Among these, the most noticeable factor is the light intensity that has a major impact on the operations of solar panels.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper aims to design an enhanced prediction model on illuminance or irradiance by an optimized artificial neural network (ANN). The input attributes or the features considered here are temperatures, maxim, TSL, VI, short circuit current, open-circuit voltage, maximum power point (MPP) voltage, MPP current and MPP power, respectively. To enhance the performance of the prediction model, the weights of ANN are optimally tuned by a new self-improved brain storm optimization (SI-BSO) model.
Findings
The superiority of the implemented work is compared and proved over the conventional models in terms of error analysis and prediction analysis. Accordingly, the presented approach was analysed and its superiority was proved over other conventional schemes such as ANN, ANN-Levenberg–Marquardt (LM), adaptive-network-based fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and brainstorm optimization (BSO). In addition, analysis was held with respect to error measures such as mean absolute relative error (MARE), mean square root error (MSRE), mean absolute error and mean absolute percentage error. Moreover, prediction analysis was also performed that revealed the betterment of the presented model. More particularly, the proposed ANN + SI-BSO model has attained minimal error for all measures when compared to the existing schemes. More particularly, on considering the MARE, the adopted model for data set 1 was 23.61%, 48.12%, 79.39% and 90.86% better than ANN, ANN-LM, ANFIS and BSO models, respectively. Similarly, on considering data set 2, the MSRE of the implemented model was 99.87%, 70.69%, 99.57% and 94.74% better than ANN, ANN-LM, ANFIS and BSO models, respectively. Thus, the enhancement of the presented ANN + SI-BSO scheme has been validated effectively.
Originality/value
This work has established an improved illuminance/irradiance prediction model using the optimization concept. Here, the attributes, namely, temperature, maxim, TSL, VI, Isc, Voc, Vmpp, Impp and Pmpp were given as input to ANN, in which the weights were chosen optimally. For the optimal selection of weights, a novel ANN + SI-BSO model was established, which was an improved version of the BSO model.
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Pipin Kurnia and Ardianto
This study aims to determine the effect of board gender diversity on cyber security disclosure (CSD) in the banking sector of Indonesia as a developing country that adheres to a…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to determine the effect of board gender diversity on cyber security disclosure (CSD) in the banking sector of Indonesia as a developing country that adheres to a two-tier system.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a panel data of 47 banks listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange from 2014 to 2021. The board gender diversity is measured by three proxies, the proportion of women on the board, BLAU Index value and the critical mass of women. The authors used generalized method of moments estimation to eliminate the simultaneous equation bias.
Findings
The results show that the women board of commissioners increases CSD, and the women of board of directors/top management team were significantly negative for CSD.
Research limitations/implications
First, this research was only conducted in the banking sector. The results cannot be generalized to non-financial companies. Second, there is no measurement of the quality of the board from the level of education, experience, expertise and other characteristics of diversity such as age, nationality and religion.
Practical implications
The study has revealed the need for the government’s role in providing oversight of the presence of women on the board so that banks fully comply with Indonesia Financial Services Authority regulations. Banks should also actively launch policies regarding the presence of women on the board to give a positive effect to stakeholders that women play an important role in decision making. Banks must also adjust the composition of female commissioners with a threshold of two people to maximize their function as supervisors.
Originality/value
This is the first research conducted on the banking sector in Indonesia as a developing country that adheres to a two-tier system. The results of this study provide evidence that patriarchal culture is still dominant in Indonesia.