Intellectual Structure of the Belt and Road Initiative Research: A Scientometric Analysis and Suggestions for a Future Research Agenda
25 Aug 2020-Sustainability (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)-Vol. 12, Iss: 17, pp 6901
TL;DR: The authors used bibliometric data from 1583 articles from 2013 to 2019 in the Web of Science and Scopus databases to identify and analyze the intellectual structure, hotspots, and emerging trends in this field.
Abstract: China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has attracted increasing attention worldwide since its inception in 2013. Although the research is fast increasing in terms of publications, there is a lack of knowledge about the intellectual structure, research trends, and appropriate theories underpinning. Using bibliometric data from 1583 articles from 2013 to 2019 in the Web of Science and Scopus databases, we used bibliometric techniques and scientometric analyses to identify and analyze the intellectual structure, hotspots, and emerging trends in this field. We identified 18 clusters that we categorized into three groups for thematic discussion. Research gaps and future research directions were identified and proposed after qualitative content analysis. By providing the big picture of the latest research on BRI since it was initiated, this paper serves as a one-stop shop for multi-disciplinary research on the topic.
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose a more comprehensive meaning of the term "good governance", which is defined as "the totality of processes and arrangements, both formal and informal, by which power and public authority are distributed and regulated".
Abstract: Governance in China, edited by Jude Howell. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2003. xiv + 279 pp. US$75.00 (hardcover), US$27.95 (paperback). The term governance is "contested", says Jude Howell in the introduction to this new edited book, "and the juxtaposition of 'good' augments the evaluative nature of the concept" (p. 1). Rather than employ the usual normative, institutional and managerial definition of the term (good governance is transparent, predictable, accountable and participatory) that has been suggested by international agencies such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, Howell suggests a more comprehensive meaning: "the totality of processes and arrangements, both formal and informal, by which power and public authority are distributed and regulated". From this premise the book sets out to analyze some of these processes. The book can be divided roughly into three parts. The first three chapters-by Joseph Fewsmith on the elite politics of China's reforms, John P. Burns on civil service reform and Zhu Sanzhu on the privatization of lawyers' services-deal with governance in the "usual" way, looking at the impact of major reforms on the ability of the Chinese government and its institutions to improve performance and become more predictable, accountable and so on. The next six chapters elaborate on Howell's extended version of governance, and investigate the marketization of culture (Michale Kaene), new self-government institutions in rural villages (Linda Jakobson) and in the urban residential neighborhoods (Zhang Jing), and civilsociety organizations representing marginal interests (Howell) and women (Du Jie). The final two chapters are on the challenges that the working class (Marc Blecher) and such religious organizations as the Falun Gong (Clemens Stubbe Ostergaard) present to the Party's ability to govern effectively in the face of societal discontent. The book is a welcome contribution to the existing literature on contemporary China. It will be a useful textbook for teachers examining Chinese society and politics, and the readable style and informative content of most of the essays will also attract a readership among public administrators, NGOs and policy makers. However, while the book offers insights into many specific aspects of power arrangements in China, the use of "governance" in such a broad social and political perspective raises some questions. Conceptually, the above-mentioned four generally accepted parameters of governance define a limited-and almost objective-field of investigation where "goodness" can be measured on the basis of rigid criteria borrowed from management textbooks and from the idea of "corporate governance". …
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16 May 2010
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Abstract: In this article, we study the antecedents of supplier innovativeness and supplier pricing. Based on an extensive literature review, we identify different types of antecedents: (1) 'technical' antecedents, which include the capabilities of suppliers to innovate (such as their level of R&D investment) and (2) 'behavioural' antecedents, which focus on the position of the buyer as a supplier's preferred customer. We hypothesise that the two antecedents influence supplier innovativeness in a positive way. Furthermore, we analyse supplier pricing behaviour. We assume that suppliers' awareness of their capabilities to innovate might provoke them to charge unfair prices, while preferred customer status may reverse this tendency and lead to more benevolent supplier pricing behaviour. We test the conceptual framework using a sample of 166 buyer-supplier relations. We find out that technical and behavioural antecedents can explain supplier innovativeness to a large extent, with the role of preferred customer status striking out. Remarkably, whereas we expected that suppliers who are involved in innovation would be found to charge higher prices for their contributions to newly developed products, our results show that this effect is not statistically significant. The missing link between supplier pricing and supplier innovativeness can encourage firms to engage in collaborative innovation, at all, because buyers do not need to fear being overcharged. Implementing a preferred customer policy can improve the conditions for innovating with suppliers.
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29 Aug 2017
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the linkages and the opportunities the BRI presents for Sub-Saharan African countries, where China is Africa's largest trading partner on a country basis but also has established a critical geopolitical presence across the continent.
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TL;DR: The authors examines and critiques the massive literature on China's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and points out that research currently seems stuck on the road to nowhere and identifies a number of the potholes that collective research endeavors are hitting such as that they are poorly synchronized.
Abstract: This piece examines and critiques the massive literature on China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). It details how research currently seems stuck on the road to nowhere. In addition, it identifies a number of the potholes that collective research endeavors are hitting such as that they are poorly synchronized. It also stresses that lines of analysis are proliferating rather than optimizing, with studies broadening in thematic coverage, rather than becoming deeper. It points out that BRI participants are regularly related to the role of a bit player in many analyses and research often is disconnected from other literatures. Among other things, this article recommends analysts focus on the Maritime Silk Road Initiative (MSRI) or Silk Road Economic Belt (SREB) in specific regions or countries. It also argues for a research core that focuses on the implementation issue (i.e., the issue of MSRI and SREB project implementation), project effects (i.e., the economic and political costs and benefits of projects), and the translation issue (i.e., the domestic and foreign policy effects of projects) and does work that goes beyond the usual suspects. On a related note, research need to identify, more precisely, participants and projects, undertake causal analysis, and take into account countervailing factors. Furthermore, studies need to make more extensive use of the Chinese foreign policy literature. Moreover, works examining subjects like soft power need to improve variable conceptualization and operationalization and deliver more nuanced analyses. Finally, studies, especially by area specialists, should take the area, not the China, perspective.
22 citations
25 Apr 2022
TL;DR: This paper aims to review studies on the Metaverse using bibliometric analysis, offering a comprehensive overview of expected Metaverse impacts on industry and society.
Abstract: The term “Metaverse” first appeared in Neal Stephenson’s 1992 science fiction novel Snow Crash. It was defined as a virtual environment shared through the Internet in which avatars represent persons in three dimensions and users can build what they wish. Since the publication of Stephenson’s novel, technology advances have enabled the creation of several Metaverses for popular usage, such as virtual world platforms like World of Warcraft and Second Life. This paper aims to review studies on the Metaverse using bibliometric analysis. The findings include a summary of the most important scientific articles andjournals in the subject area, as well as the most prolific and prominent authors, organisations, and nations. Furthermore, keyword co-occurrence analysis revealed the core research clusters and their sub-themes, allowing for more pertinent debates and viewpoints on vital areas for future research. Finally, the implications for theory and practice have been addressed, offering a comprehensive overview of expected Metaverse impacts on industry and society.
21 citations
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"Intellectual Structure of the Belt ..." refers methods in this paper
...To fill this gap, we combine three methodological approaches—bibliometric analysis [20], visual knowledge mapping with scientometrics [21], and content analysis [22]—to conduct a systematic review of the BRI literature from 2013–2019....
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"Intellectual Structure of the Belt ..." refers methods in this paper
...Four types of bibliometric techniques were applied in the scientometric analysis: (i) citation analysis [37], (ii) Document Co-citation Analysis (DCA) [38], (iii) Author Co-citation Analysis (ACA) [38], and (iv) Bibliographic Coupling [39]....
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