Spatial co-localisation of firms and entrepreneurial dynamics

In this conceptual paper, I propose an interpretation of business dynamics in terms of the spatial co-localisation of firms—considered as an intelligent cognitive system—in a circumscribed area in order to form clusters of various types. I interpret clustering by adopting the methodology of multi-agent combinatory systems: that is, systems formed by collectivities of agents (firms) in which an internal feedback recombines the micro behaviours of the agents (localisation) in order to produce a macro effect (cluster) which, in turn, modifies the attractiveness of the area and conditions the subsequent localisations. I also present the idea that if a cluster has fitness advantages for new firms, then usually new entrepreneurs are formed within it and the cluster widens, due to the endogenous genesis of new firms.     

Differentiating growing ventures from non-growth firms

This is the first step of the studies examining which factors differentiate growing from the non-growth firms. Four hypothesis of new firm performance will be tested with logistic regression method. Venture growth, measured by the growth of turnover, will be explained by entrepreneurial characteristics and motivation, and interaction between the firm and environment. The longitudinal study concentrates on the 86 responses, half of these responses (43) were classified as growing and the other half as non-growth firms. Personality characteristics and environmental factors do not explain the growth but experience, training and motivation are important variables that differentiate growing ventures from non-growth firms.     

Trade liberalisation and agglomeration with firm heterogeneity: Forward and backward linkages

This paper studies the impact of trade cost reductions on the geographical concentration of manufacturing in the presence of intermediate input linkages, firm heterogeneity and fixed export costs. The presence of non-exporting firms in this Melitz-like model hampers full agglomeration by weakening the forward and backward linkages and fortifying market-crowding effect. Gradual trade liberalisation causes gradual agglomeration rather than the catastrophic agglomeration that economic geography models have long suggested. Also, trade liberalisation produces divergent welfare effects with the periphery losing and the core gaining; even costless trade fails to equalise welfare in the core and periphery due to non-exported intermediate inputs.     

Integration, agglomeration and welfare

This paper studies the social desirability of agglomeration, and the efficiency arguments for policy intervention in a simple, analytically tractable new economic geography model. The location pattern emerging as market equilibrium is ‘bubble-shaped’, i.e. it features dispersion both at high and low trade costs and stable equilibria with partial and full agglomeration for intermediate levels of trade costs. We show that the market equilibrium is characterized by over-agglomeration for high trade costs and under-agglomeration for low trade costs, and we work out analytically that a net pecuniary externality is the underlying cause of this market failure. One particularly noteworthy result is that the net pecuniary externality is positive at high levels of trade freeness. However, there is no market under-agglomeration unless this positive net pecuniary externality interacts with an additional congestion force originating in the (per se efficient) competitive housing market.     

Urban Agglomeration and Dispersion: A Synthesis of Alonso and Krugman

Urban agglomeration becomes increasingly important because of the globalization of world economies. This paper is a general equilibrium analysis of urban agglomeration economies due to product variety, and agglomeration diseconomies due to intra-city congestion in a two-city system framework. Special attention is paid to the impacts of transportation cost decrease on urban concentration and dispersion. Our main result is that dispersion necessarily takes place when the transportation cost is sufficiently low. We also conduct numerical calculations using specific parameter values, and depict a structural transition from dispersion to agglomeration, and then re-dispersion when the transportation costs decrease monotonically over time. Finally, we observe that dispersion is usually bad as compared to agglomeration, from a welfare point of view.     

Mixed oligopoly, foreign firms, and location choice

We investigate a mixed market in which a state-owned, welfare-maximizing public firm competes against n domestic private firms and m foreign private firms which are all profit-maximizing. A circular city model with quantity-setting competition is employed. We find that the equilibrium location pattern depends on m. All private firms agglomerate in the unique equilibrium if m is zero or one. Two foreign firms induce differentiation between domestic and foreign private firms. More than two foreign firms yield differentiation among the foreign firms. Regardless of n and m, agglomeration of all domestic private firms appears in equilibrium. We provide several conditions in which eliminating the public firm from the market enhances social welfare. We extend the basic model and investigate three issues concerning multiple public firms, inefficiency of the public firm, and entries by private firms. We obtain some additional implications of welfare and equilibrium locations.     

Interference of Local Government, Industrial Concentrative Rate and Corporate Diversification

This paper studies the effects of internal and external environments on the strategic decision-making of diversification using the cross-sectional data of China＇s 1 033 non-financial listed companies in Shenzhen and Shanghai Exchange. Corporate external-environment is substituted by index of marketization and market concentrative rate, and internal-environment is substituted by governance framework and financial status. The multi-regression analysis shows that the strategic decision-making of diversification is prominently affected by external factors such as index of marketization and market concentrative rate, and is significantly negative related to the proportion of state-owned shares and corporate shares. There is no correlation between diversification and whether directors hold concurrently, or manager compensation, cash flow, and debt ratio.     

The challenge of constructing regional advantages in peripheral areas: The case of marine biotechnology in Tromsø, Norway

The idea of constructing regional advantage (CRA) has recently been emphasized by scholars as a new way for firms to gain competitiveness in a globalizing learning economy. The rationale behind the idea is that advantages in a regional industry can be constructed by proactive public–private partnership. This article uses, and examines the relevance of, the CRA framework in analysing the development and functioning of the marine biotechnology industry in Tromsø, which is a fairly peripheral region in Norway. Despite the fact that much effort has been put into education and R&D at the University of Tromsø and related research institutes, and the fact that many public policy tools have intended to create a blooming marine biotechnology industry in the area, the results have so far been meagre. This article explains the rather weak results in terms of the number of firms and jobs in the marine biotechnology industry in Tromsø as being due to a lack of synthetic knowledge on how to industrialize research results and little spillover of market knowledge. With regard to more general theoretical lessons linked to the CRA framework, this article argues for seeing the concept of related variety in a broader industrial and geographical sense in peripheral regions.     

Firm heterogeneity, productivity and spatially bounded knowledge externalities

In this paper, we argue that conceptually disentangling the ‘context versus composition’ aspects of regional growth is a multilevel issue. By applying multilevel models (also called random-effects models), we show (1) the importance of considering firm-specific characteristics simultaneously with region-specific characteristics, as we find that a large part of what is traditionally assigned to the impact of the region should be assigned to firm-specific characteristics and (2) that existing single-level methodologies can be problematic, as they are vulnerable to the charge of estimating significance levels that are too liberally assigned and promote exaggerations. This is illustrated empirically by showing that single-level approaches would lead to the conclusion that innovation spillovers are highly significant in a setting of Dutch urban growth differentials, while multilevel analyses shows less liberally assigned significance levels. We conclude that multilevel-effect models better fit research questions that combine firm and spatial characteristics simultaneously, especially because they allow firm-specific characteristics to be differently linked to their regional contexts.     

创业管理因素结构及反向题目方法效应研究

本研究分析创业管理量表反向题目对因素模型引入的方法效应,通过在模型中引入方法因子,发展并验证创业管理的一个新的二阶2因素模型。本文通过对中国277家企业的调查数据进行验证性因素分析,讨论不同因素模型的理论基础、复杂程度及可解释性,最后指出结论的理论意涵。     

县域经济的发展与城市化进程的推进——关于沈阳和大连的实证分析

以辽宁省的沈阳和大连为例,通过聚类分析和因子分析对沈阳和大连所属的县域城市竞争力作对比.实证分析表明,沈阳和大连的县域经济差异显著.因此,壮大县域经济是沈阳当前乃至今后的迫切任务.应通过产业结构升级、加快基础设施建设等措施发展县域经济,将县级城市作为其中心城市的卫星城,为城市化的发展注入新的活力.     

Entrepreneurial education and learning at universities: exploring multilevel contingencies

Abstract

Despite the worldwide increase in entrepreneurship education offered at universities, there is an ongoing debate whether and under which conditions this type of education contributes to students’ entrepreneurial learning. Building on human capital theory, we hypothesize that the exposure to various entrepreneurship education initiatives has an inverted U-shaped relationship with entrepreneurial learning outcomes. We also argue that this relationship is moderated by the entrepreneurial experience of the students, the teaching pedagogy applied in entrepreneurial initiatives offered at the university and the prevalence of opportunity-driven entrepreneurship in the country. A multi-level analysis on a cross-country sample of 87,918 students resulting from GUESSS (‘Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey’) strongly confirms our hypotheses, and allows us to discuss implications for researchers, educators and policy makers with respect to the nature of entrepreneurial learning, the design of entrepreneurial education programs, as well as the contextual conditions that impact entrepreneurial learning outcomes.     

Reinforcing collectiveness in entrepreneurial interactions within start-up teams: a multiple-case study

ABSTRACT

Using a qualitative multiple-case study approach and data from four high-technology team startups, we elaborate a theory on organizing entrepreneurial actions as team efforts and the kinds of interactions that reinforce collectiveness amongst entrepreneurial teams. Through systematic thematic analysis, we find that entrepreneurial action reinforces collectiveness through and during (a) the joint analysis and planning of entrepreneurial opportunities and strategies, (b) the joint decision-making and realization of opportunities and (c) the evaluation, feedback and sanction of entrepreneurial action. We analyse the dimensions through Giddens’s ideas on the duality of structures and agencies. We identify interactions that reflect a joint elaboration of opportunities, open and continuous sharing of knowledge and feelings, equality and democracy, joint effort and credit, informality and lack of bureaucracy, and feedback and helping. Our insights could be applied to create collectively entrepreneurial teams and to design education and training activities at a macro level to enable regional development.     

企业财务重述在集团内部传染效应的实证研究

企业财务重述代表财务报告的低质量与不可信,会给企业带来严重的经济后果,作为同一控制人控制下的集团内其他企业也会受到不良影响。以2003—2014年深沪两市A股主板上市集团公司为样本,比较财务重述公告前后集团内重述企业与重述关联企业的市场反应发现,财务报表重述在集团内存在负传染效应,并且,重述内容、重述滞后期、重述发起方以及重述企业聘请的审计事务所规模、集团公司的控制人性质和审计方式都会影响这种传染效应。