Innovation is critical to technological progress and has many theories to explain its processes. Organised competition has been shown empirically to provide an alternative pathway for innovation ...within an industry, increasing innovation rates and radicalness. This research introduces and develops the new staged competition innovation theory which builds on the well-understood diffusion of innovation theory and the Technology–Organisation–Environment framework to explain how decision-making and technological, organisational, and environmental characteristics of industry-based competition can drive innovation activity. The new theory comprises three principles that demonstrate how a well-designed staged competition provides: (1) a unique innovation mechanism away from parent industry constraints, (2) a unique agile environment that can increase innovation development, and (3) a return pathway for adoption back to the parent industry. Principle 2 addresses the specific competition environment criteria required to drive innovation, beginning with a co-dependency between organiser and teams in providing team confidence and a mutually beneficial outcome for both parties. Relative advantage drives teams to innovate by generating competitive pressure, while a variable solution space due to competition specific rules and competition brief clarity direct innovation efforts. Finally, competition repetition provides ongoing innovation transfer between teams within the competition and to the parent industry.
Ecological stoichiometry is the study of the balance of ecosystem energy and nutrient cycling, especially carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P). C, N, and P are the key elements for plant ...growth and metabolism. Systematic research on leaf stoichiometry in mangrove forest ecosystems is still lacking. To understand the leaf stoichiometry of introduced species and native species in mangrove forests, we selected four species (one introduced species, Sonneratia apetala, and three native species, Avicennia marina, Aegiceras corniculatum, and Kandelia obovate) and measured leaf C, N, and P contents under different light conditions. The results showed that there were significant negative scaling relationships of leaf C versus N and C versus P but positive scaling relationships of leaf N versus P in the four mangrove species. Light and competition had significant effects on leaf stoichiometry, especially under the full light condition. S. apetala influenced leaf elements in a mixture with native species. Interspecific competition reduced leaf N and P contents in A. corniculatum and K. obovate but increased leaf N and P contents in A. marina. Leaf N and P contents of the four species showed similar responses to both intraspecific and interspecific competition. The ratio of leaf C:N:P (108:11:1) in the mangrove forests was lower than that in other ecosystems, and species with a higher growth rate had a higher leaf P content and lower N:P ratio, supporting the growth rate hypothesis. Leaf N:P was 11.04, indicating that there was N limitation in the mangrove forests. This systematic research of leaf stoichiometry of mangrove forests improves our understanding of mangrove growth and nutrient use strategies in response to different environmental stresses.
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•Leaf C, N, and P concentrations and their ratios had scaling relationships in the mangrove forests.•Light and competition significantly influenced the leaf stoichiometry of mangrove plants.•There was N limitation in the mangrove forests.•Leaf stoichiometry of the mangrove forests supported the growth rate hypothesis.
Invasive species are one of the greatest threats to freshwater ecosystems globally. However, the causal mechanisms that drive negative impacts of many invasive species are poorly understood. In ...Tanzania, non-native Nile tilapia (
Oreochromis niloticus
) exists in sympatry with a diverse range of native species, many of which are congenerics with strong niche overlap. It has been suggested that
O. niloticus
can displace native species from preferred habitat through dominance during interference competition, yet interference competition between
O. niloticus
and a native tilapia species has never been directly tested under experimental conditions. In this study juvenile
O. niloticus
and Manyara tilapia (
Oreochromis amphimelas
), a functionally similar but endangered Tanzanian cichlid, were size matched in conspecific and heterospecific pairs. We presented pairs with limited shelter and recorded competitive interactions. We found that
O. niloticus
were more aggressive and faster to initiate agonistic interactions than
O. amphimelas
. Furthermore,
O. niloticus
showed a strong competitive dominance in their interactions with
O. amphimelas
. One-sided dominance hierarchies can drive fundamental changes in resource use by subordinate individuals, potentially resulting in habitat displacement over the long term. Based on this experimental evidence, we conclude that
O. niloticus
may threaten native tilapia species through dominance in interference competition.
Vocal communication in songbirds is important for aggressive signaling, such that an honest signal allows receivers to assess a competitor's qualities. One aspect of song that conspecifics may assess ...is vocal performance. An example of vocal performance is how well an individual performs the trade-off between trill rate and bandwidth in production of repeated notes. This type of vocal performance (vocal deviation) is thought to be an honest signal because a male's ability to maximize both bandwidth and trill rate is limited by motor constraints on sound modification. Further, how well a male can repeat this trade-off may provide receivers with information about the signaler, and a male's own level of vocal performance can affect the strength of response to high-performance songs. We tested whether males assess each other based on vocal performance in an important model species, the White-crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys). We show that male White-crowned Sparrows respond more strongly to high-performance songs than to lower-performance songs in 2 different locations, supporting the hypothesis that males utilize vocal performance to assess competitors. We also provide initial evidence that vocal performance varies among males and is repeatable within individuals.
Research summary: Existing research describes a broad range of determinants of new product development (NPD), a fundamental competitive activity of firms. A considerable share of this work has ...occurred in the context of developed economies, raising a concern that some important determinants may remain unexamined. We suggest that one such determinant is competition from informal (unregistered) firms. Drawing from the attention-based view, we investigate the effects of informal competition on NPD in a large sample of firms located across Eastern Europe and Central Asia. We examine not only the direct effect but also how this effect is moderated by characteristics of the competitive and institutional context. Managerial summary: The purpose of this research is to examine the relationship between competition from informal (unregistered) firms and new product development (NPD) by formal firms. We argue that NPD is an effective response to differentiate from informal firms, and our analyses of over 9,000 firms located in emerging economies across Eastern Europe and Central Asia indicate that NPD activities are more likely in formal firms who rate informal competition as a greater obstacle. The strength of this direct relationship depends on aspects of the competitive and institutional environment: it is weakened when levels of competition from other formal firms are higher, when alternative responses such as corruption are more available, and when managers are more optimistic about the regulatory environment.
In this paper we study the interactions between diffusion and heterogeneity of the environment in the classical diffusive Lotka—Volterra competition systems. In the weak competition case, we ...establish the uniqueness, hence the global asymptotic stability, of coexistence steady states under various circumstances, and thereby we obtain a complete understanding of the change in dynamics when one of the interspecific competition coefficients is small.
The two particular reforms that have been undertaken under the Health Transformation Program in Turkey are enhancing efficiency and increasing competition. However, there is a lack of information ...about the relationship between competition and hospital efficiency. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effect of competition on technical efficiency for the hospital industry in Turkey. The target population included all public and private general hospitals that were open in 2010 in Turkey (
n
= 1,224). From these, 1,103 hospitals met the selection criteria and were included in the study. Data were obtained from the Turkish Statistical Institute, the Ministry of Health, and through a field survey. Technical efficiency of hospitals was estimated using Data Envelopment Analysis with five outputs and five inputs. The intensity of competition among hospitals was measured by objective and subjective measures. Objective competition was measured using the Hirschman-Herfindahl Index, and subjective competition was measured based on the perceptions of top level hospital managers. Multivariate Tobit regression was used to investigate the relationship between competition and efficiency while controlling the effects of demand and supply characteristics of the market and the hospital traits. Efficiency results showed that 17 % of hospitals were technically efficient. Regression analyses portrayed that the degree of competition among general hospitals did not have a statistically significant relationship with hospitals’ technical efficiency. To conclude, hospital efficiency in Turkey does not seem to be affected by the intensity of competition among hospitals.
Over the past 40 years, the volatility of the average stock return has drastically outpaced total market volatility. Thus, idiosyncratic return volatility has dramatically increased. We estimate this ...increase to be 6% per year. Consistent with an efficient market, this result is mirrored by an increase in the idiosyncratic volatility of fundamental cash flows. We argue that these findings are attributable to the more intense economy-wide competition. Various cross-sectional and time-series tests support this idea. Economic competitiveness facilitates reinterpretation of the results from the cross-country R² literature, as well as the US idiosyncratic risk literature.
This paper aims to explain the competition among spacefaring states in outer space. In contrast to rivalry among great powers on Earth, the competition in space does not merely reflect the situation ...on Earth. Spacefaring states tend to put their preferences to the most beneficial stakeholders possible. The United States, as the current hegemon in space exploration, has to share its partners on Earth, for instance, the European States, with rival states, such as China. Through a neorealist approach and secondary data collected from various sources, this paper advances that in line with the neorealist assumption, neither ideology nor traditional alliance shapes the international political posture, but rather rational consideration and ability to maximize national interests. In the end, this paper shows that the behavior among states in terms of space exploration related to defence is more varied, unlike the pattern of military competition that occurs on Earth. Choices and changes in the power structure in space are possible based on capability and strategic actions among competing spacefaring states.
•Black spruce and tamarack growth over 10-year greatly reduces as the size of neighbouring trees increases.•The distance between trees had no influence on potential growth in mature even-aged mixt ...stands.•Intra and interspecific competition had similar limited effect on basal area increment of black spruce and tamarack.•Tamarack was overall more sensitive to crowding competition than black spruce.
Little is known about the growth interactions of black spruce (Picea mariana) and tamarack (Larix laricina), two important commercial tree species of the Canadian boreal forest. We investigated growth relations between black spruce and tamarack in mature mixed stands. We sampled tree-rings of 223 black spruce and 103 tamaracks to analyze their basal area increment over 10 years. We mapped, identified the species, and measured the diameter at breast height of each neighbouring tree in 112 circular plots of 400 m2 to analyze basal area increments through spatially explicit models. The model estimating crowding effect of neighbouring tree was adjusted with 4 parameters expressing the effect of distance, size of neighbours, size of target tree and species. Our models suggested that the size of neighbouring trees was the main parameter influencing competition between the studied species. Black spruce basal area increments over 10 years declined up to 22 cm2 when surrounded by large neighbours. Tamarack basal area increments declined by 48 cm2 due to competition by large neighbours. However, the overall crowding effect showed that tamarack was more sensitive to competition than black spruce and the intraspecific and interspecific competition had similar effect. Our research provides insight on growth relations between two important commercial species of the Canadian boreal forest.
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