S ocke , Miklós; E délyi, Ádám
A icle
The in luence o pe cei ed mac o en i onmen on he
compe i i eness o in e na ionalized medium-sized and
la ge en e p ises
Adminis a i e Sciences
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MDPI – Mul idisciplina y Digi al Publishing Ins i u e, Basel
Sugges ed Ci a ion: S ocke , Miklós; E délyi, Ádám (2024) : The in luence o pe cei ed mac o
en i onmen on he compe i i eness o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge en e p ises,
Adminis a i e Sciences, ISSN 2076-3387, MDPI, Basel, Vol. 14, Iss. 6, pp. 1-27,
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Ci a ion: S ocke , Miklós, and Ádám
E délyi. 2024. The In luence o
Pe cei ed Mac o En i onmen on he
Compe i i eness o In e na ionalized
Medium-Sized and La ge En e p ises.
Adminis a i e Sciences 14: 116.
h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/admsci
14060116
Recei ed: 6 May 2024
Re ised: 20 May 2024
Accep ed: 22 May 2024
Published: 31 May 2024
Copy igh : © 2024 by he au ho s.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Swi ze land.
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adminis a i e
sciences
A icle
The In luence o Pe cei ed Mac o En i onmen on he
Compe i i eness o In e na ionalized Medium-Sized and
La ge En e p ises
Miklós S ocke * and Ádám E délyi
Ins i u e o S a egy and Managemen , Co inus Uni e si y o Budapes , 1093 Budapes , Hunga y;
[email p o ec ed]
*Co espondence: [email p o ec ed]
Abs ac : Fi m compe i i eness is a c ucial ai o companies which manage s s i e o imp o e,
and e en policy make s ocus on i ega ding economic de elopmen . As companies a e embedded
in o di e en laye s o he en i onmen , his s udy aims o iden i y he in luence o op manage ial
pe cep ion abou he ex e nal en i onmen on he i m-le el compe i i eness o medium-sized and
la ge in e na ionalized companies. The in es iga ion is based on he 6 h ound o he Compe i i eness
Su ey conduc ed in Hunga y be ween Oc obe 2018 and July 2019 om which n= 107 medium-
sized o la ge companies quali ied o his s udy. The ins i u ion-based iew om he s a egic
managemen li e a u e was chosen o di e en ia e he a iables in he mac oeconomic en i onmen
o he i m while he FCI index was used o measu e i m-le el compe i i eness. A e conduc ing
ac o and eg ession analyses, he esul s show ha he pe cei ed mac o en i onmen is posi i ely
ela ed o he compe i i eness o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge companies. Manage ial
pe cep ions on ci il se ice and educa ion had he s onges signi ican posi i e associa ion wi h i m-
le el compe i i eness, whe eas pe cep ions on social and ecological expec a ions had a signi ican
posi i e associa ion wi h he Adap i i y o he i m. This s udy con ibu es o he exis ing body o
li e a u e by demons a ing ha , e en wi hin con en ious ins i u ional con ex s, he pe cep ions o
in e na ionalized medium and la ge companies’ op manage s ega ding educa ion, ci il se ice,
and social and ecological expec a ions ha e a disce nible in luence on he compe i i eness o hese
companies.
Keywo ds: ins i u ion-based iew; mac oeconomic en i onmen ; i m-le el compe i i eness;
medium-sized and la ge en e p ises; in e na ionaliza ion; s a egic managemen
1. In oduc ion
Se e al s udies show he impac o i m esou ces (Ande sén 2011;Lin and Wu 2014;
P o oge ou e al. 2011;Zhang and Li 2008;) and indus y o ces (De us e al. 2008;Mülle
e al. 2018;Tee a ansi ikool e al. 2013) on company-le el pe o mance; howe e , he e is
signi ican ly less esea ch abou he impac o he ins i u ional en i onmen (Dabla-No is
e al. 2020;Gaganis e al. 2019). The eason behind his is ha he ins i u ions o he
mac oeconomic en i onmen only se ed as backg ound a iables in he esou ce-based
iew and in he indus y-based iew (Peng e al. 2008). To ill he gap, Peng p oposed
an ins i u ion-based iew which elies speci ically on hese ins i u ions when analyzing
he pe o mance o i ms (Peng e al. 2009). Schola s using his iew o unde s and he
di e ence in pe o mance be ween i ms achie ed p omising esul s, especially o i ms
ope a ing in (o om) de eloping coun ies.
This s udy ocuses on his esea ch gap o answe he ollowing ques ion: wha is he
impac o he pe cei ed mac o en i onmen on he compe i i eness o in e na ionalized
Hunga ian medium-sized and la ge en e p ises? The examina ion o Hunga y as a con ex-
ual amewo k o he pe cei ed mac o en i onmen , pa icula ly in ela ion o i m-le el
Adm. Sci. 2024,14, 116. h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/admsci14060116 h ps://www.mdpi.com/jou nal/admsci
Adm. Sci. 2024,14, 116 2 o 16
compe i i eness, is a opic o signi ican academic in e es . This is p ima ily owing o
he ac ions o he Hunga ian Go e nmen , which di e ge om he mains eam p ac ices
obse ed wi hin he Eu opean Union. The li e a u e e iew elies on he ounda ions o
o ganiza ional en i onmen esea ch ( he wo ks o Bou geois 1980;Child 1972;Miles e al.
1974; and he ins i u ion-based iew Peng 2002;Peng e al. 2009;Peng e al. 2008). Fo
unde s anding and measu ing compe i i eness, he Fi m Compe i i eness Index (Chikán
2006;Losonci and Bo sos 2015;Chikán e al. 2022;S ocke and Vá konyi 2022) is used.
This s udy con ibu es o he exis ing body o li e a u e by demons a ing ha , e en
wi hin con en ious ins i u ional con ex s, he pe cep ions o in e na ionalized medium and
la ge companies’ op manage s ega ding educa ion, ci il se ice, and social and ecological
expec a ions ha e a disce nible in luence on he compe i i eness o hese companies. In his
s udy, a complex compe i i eness measu e ha indica es long- e m success in a mul idi-
mensional and de ailed way (which is also in acco dance wi h Chikán e al. 2022 o Lau en e
e al. 2020b) is used, and a ep esen a i e sample o in e na ionalized medium-sized and
la ge companies om Hunga y is ob ained. Al hough se e al s udies in he li e a u e ocus
on SMEs (Gaganis e al. 2019;Donbesuu e al. 2020), medium-sized and la ge en e p ises
a e signi ican ly less isible in he li e a u e and ep esen a i e sample s udies on hem a e
especially a e.
Fi s , a b ie li e a u e e iew is p o ided abou he ins i u ional con ex o o gani-
za ions and he ounda ions o i m-le el compe i i eness. A e he elabo a ion on he
esea ch me hod and he sample used, he key indings o his pape will be p esen ed,
ollowed by a de ailed discussion.
2. Li e a u e Re iew
2.1. The Ex e nal En i onmen o O ganiza ions and I s In luence on Companies
The undamen al li e a u e on he o ganiza ional en i onmen was laid down in he
las 60 yea s by au ho s like Miles e al. (1974); Child (1972); Thompson and McEwen (1958)
and Bou geois (1980). They s a ed ha e e y hing ha occu s in he ex e nal en i onmen
in luences he o ganiza ion, ypically h ough cons ain s, and “an o ganiza ion canno
e ol e o de elop in ways which me ely e lec he goals, mo i es o needs o i s membe s
o o i s leade ship since i mus always bow o he cons ain s imposed on i by he na u e
o i s ela ionship wi h he en i onmen ” (Child 1972, p. 3). Eme y and T is (1965) highligh
ha besides his di ec ela ionship, he casual ex u e o he en i onmen also in luences
he o ganiza ion. Rega ding en i onmen al con ol, Thompson and McEwen (1958) s a e
ha an o ganiza ion is somewhe e be ween being o ally con olled by i s en i onmen and
being comple ely in con ol o i s en i onmen .
O ganiza ional decision-make s ha e an op ion o choosing—up o a ce ain le el— he
en i onmen hey would like o ope a e in, as hey a e bo h en i onmen -dependen and
en i onmen -se ing (Eme y and T is 1965;Child 1972; and Miles e al. 1974).
Nowadays, esea ch on he in luence o he ex e nal o ganiza ional en i onmen has
become mo e ocused. Xu (2023) explo ed he ex e nal en i onmen ’s in luence on CSR
ac i i ies and ound ha an unce ain ex e nal en i onmen will educe he CSR ac i i ies o
i ms. Mo ales-Solis e al. (2023) analyzed he e ec s o co up ion and poli ical unce ain y
on eme ging ma ke SMEs and ound ha high le els o coun y co up ion and poli ical
ins abili y signi ican ly accele a e decline in SME pe o mance. Keig and B ou he s (2022)
p o ided empi ical suppo ha acco ding o inancial pe o mance MNEs can bo h gain
and lose by in es ing in co up ins i u ional en i onmen s. Sheng e al. (2023) ound ha
ins i u ional suppo nega i ely mode a es he ela ion be ween CSR and en ep eneu ial
o ien a ion.
Resea ch on he ex e nal en i onmen has also ocused on ecen yea s’ majo e en s’
impac on i m pe o mance (like he COVID-19 pandemic o he Uk ainian wa ) and
ound a di ec impac on pe o mance. Shen e al. (2020) ound a di ec nega i e impac
o COVID-19 on he pe o mance o lis ed Chinese companies. S ojˇci´c (2020) analyzed he
e ec o he pandemic on he expo compe i i eness o C oa ian manu ac u ing i ms.
Adm. Sci. 2024,14, 116 3 o 16
2.2. The Ins i u ion-Based View and he In luence o Ins i u ions on Fi m Pe o mance
Peng e al. (2008) a gue ha he esou ce-based app oach and he indus y-based iew
p ima ily conside mac oen i onmen al elemen s a he ask en i onmen le el, elega ing
he la ge ex e nal en i onmen o a backg ound condi ion. In he con ex o he “ esidual
en i onmen ,” i has been demons a ed ha ins i u ions play a c ucial ole in de e mining
he s a egic op ions a ailable o a co po a ion and i s abili y o es ablish a compe i i e
ad an age. Acco ding o Felsmann (2016), he inclusion o he ins i u ion-based iew in
mains eam heo ies has he po en ial o enhance he analy ical amewo k o s a egic
managemen .
Peng e al. (2009) ely on he wo k o No h (1990) and Sco (1995), a guing ha
ins i u ions ma e when desc ibing he ac o s ha a ec i m-le el s a egy-making and
i m-le el pe o mance, and cen e a ound he dynamic in e ac ions ha i ms and ins i u-
ions ha e be ween each o he and he esul ing s a egic choices happening because o
hese in e ac ions (Peng e al. 2009).
Many au ho s used he ins i u ional con ex in hei esea ch: Haseeb e al. (2019)
in es iga ed how social and echnological challenges impac sus ainable business pe o -
mance; P okop e al. (2018) analyzed he ela ionship be ween Czech and Slo akian i ms,
he go e nmen , and uni e si ies; Me zanis and Said (2019) s udied he e ec o access o
skilled labo on business pe o mance; Ramadani e al. (2017) in es iga ed he impac o
knowledge spillo e s; De Jong and Van Wi eloos uijn (2015) esea ched he e ec o ed
ape on i m pe o mance in he Ne he lands; Tan and T an (2017) analyzed he e ec o
he quali y o p o incial adminis a ion on i m p oduc i i y in Vie nam; Wong and Hooy
(2018) ound poli ical connec edness o be a aluable asse in minimizing ex e nal isk;
Chen e al. (2017) and Jackowicz e al. (2014) in es iga ed he connec ion be ween poli ical
connec edness and ope a ional pe o mance; T oilo e al. (2024) in es iga ed i ms and hei
ins i u ional se ing; Sadeghi e al. (2019) used sociocul u al, poli ical, legal, and economic
ac o s o analyze he in e na ionaliza ion o SMEs; Ruzeko a e al. (2020) analyzed he e -
ec o he ins i u ional en i onmen on expo pe o mance; Ja e nick-Will and Sco (2010)
iden i ied ce ain ins i u ional ac o s companies wo king on in e na ional cons uc ion
p ojec s need o know o educe unce ain y and liabili y; Fuen elsaz e al. (2015) concluded
ha he imp o emen o o mal ins i u ions is bene icial o oppo uni y en ep eneu -
ship; Ga cía-Ramos e al. (2017) in es iga ed he ela ionship be ween he ins i u ional
en i onmen and en ep eneu ial ailu e; Eesley e al. (2018) and Escandón-Ba bosa e al.
(2019) analyzed he e ec o o mal and in o mal ins i u ions on en ep eneu ial ac i i y.
Mo eo e he ins i u ion-based iew p o ed especially use ul when desc ibing i ms op-
e a ing in/ om eme ging economies: Ding and Ding (2022) used he ins i u ion-based
iew o s udy 136 Chinese i ms and ound ha ce ain ins i u ional ac o s (legal inade-
quacy and en i onmen al u bulence) ha e a signi ican e ec on ma ke and echnological
inno a i eness and hus on new p oduc pe o mance; Yamakawa e al. (2008) used he
ins i u ion-based iew o cons uc a amewo k a ound he in e na ionaliza ion o i ms
in eme ging economies in he di ec ion o de eloped economies; Gao e al. (2010) used
he s a egy ipod me hod o analyze he expo ac i i y o mo e han 15,000 Chinese
i ms be ween 2001 and 2005 and ound ha he ins i u ional a iables ha e a s ong
connec ion wi h bo h expo p opensi y and expo in ensi y; Lahi i e al. (2020) used he
s a egy ipod amewo k o syn hesize he li e a u e on amily SMEs’ in e na ionaliza ion
beha io s.
Rega ding i s in luence ela ed o i m pe o mance, he e a e wo main lines o
esea ch: he di ec ela ionship esea ch and he indi ec (mode a ing) ela ionship e-
sea ch. Fo di ec ela ionship esea ch, he measu es commonly used o i m pe o mance
a e sales g ow h/p o i abili y (Dabla-No is e al. 2020) and ROA (Gaganis e al. 2019).
Dabla-No is e al. (2020) ound a signi ican , in e sely p opo ional ela ionship be ween
he le el o ax compliance bu den (using a Tax Adminis a ion Quali y Index) and he
pe o mance o SMEs in 21 eme ging economies and de eloping coun ies. Gaganis e al.
(2019) unde ook c oss-coun y esea ch on 40 000 EU28 manu ac u ing SMEs be ween 2006
Adm. Sci. 2024,14, 116 4 o 16
and 2014, s udying he egula ion o he doing business en i onmen (BUSFR index), he
c edi acquisi ion oppo uni ies (GETCR index), he e ec o cul u e (using he amewo k
o Ho s ede 1980), and co up ion (CORFX index). Thei esul s show ha bo h BUSFR and
GETCR indices ha e a posi i e e ec on p o i abili y; ega ding he cul u al dimensions,
powe dis ance and unce ain y a oidance ha e a nega i e impac while indi idualism
and masculini y ha e a posi i e impac on p o i abili y. Rega ding co up ion, he au ho s
ound ha highe le els o co up ion impac p o i abili y nega i ely.
Fo indi ec ela ionship esea ch, au ho s in es iga ed he ela ionship be ween i m
pe o mance measu ed by ROA, ROS, labo p oduc i i y, e c. (Xiong e al. 2020;López-
Zapa a e al. 2019;Fo cadell e al. 2020;Donbesuu e al. 2020 wi h an in e na ional aspec ),
o u no e , added alue, g ow h o employmen in he sho - un (Cainelli e al. 2022) and
ac o s a ec ing he o ganiza ion/business, such as a e-inno a ion a emp a e a ailed
inno a ion (Xiong e al. 2020), being a membe o a na ional o in e na ional business g oup
(Cainelli e al. 2022), echnological and o ganiza ional inno a ion (Donbesuu e al. 2020),
he e ec o di e si ica ion s a egy (López-Zapa a e al. 2019), and he e ec o business
po olio es uc u ing (BPR) (Fo cadell e al. 2020) whe e ins i u ional ac o s we e ea ed
as ha ing an indi ec o mode a ing e ec .
In his s udy, we ollow he di ec ela ionship s eam and in es iga e whe he he
manage ial pe cep ions o he ins i u ional ac o s ha e a di ec posi i e in luence on he
compe i i eness o he gi en i m.
2.3. Fi m-Le el Compe i i eness
Compe i i eness on he i m le el is essen ial as companies y o ou pe o m hei
compe i o s. Acco ding o Chikán(2008), i m-le el compe i i eness is “
. . .
a capabili y o a
i m o sus ainably ul il i s double pu pose: mee ing cus ome equi emen s a p o i . This
capabili y is ealized h ough o e ing on he ma ke goods and se ices which cus ome s
alue highe han hose o e ed by compe i o s. Achie ing compe i i eness equi es he
i m’s con inuing adap a ion o changing social and economic no ms and condi ions”
(pp. 24–25).
Acco ding o Ce a o and Deppe u (2011), o i m-le el compe i i eness, he ac o s
o he ex e nal en i onmen se e as enable s, while he in e nal esou ces and capabili ies
a e he d i e s. These a e di ided in o o dina y capabili ies esponsible o an e icien
day- o-day ope a ion and dynamic capabili ies se ing as sou ces o inno a ion; and he
le el o compe i i eness—as he esul o his p ocess—will be ewa ded in some way by
he ma ke . Falciola e al. (2020) sha e ha i a i m would like o s ay compe i i e o an
ex ended pe iod o ime, hen besides he s a ic a iables, he dynamic a iables need o
be aken in o conside a ion as well. To measu e i m-le el compe i i eness, Chikán(2006)
c ea ed he Fi m Compe i i eness Index (he e o o e: Fi m Compe i i eness Index, FCI),
which is shown in Figu e 1.
Figu e 1. The Fi m Compe i i eness Index. Sou ce: Au ho s’ Edi ion based on (Chikán 2006).
Adm. Sci. 2024,14, 116 5 o 16
In he FCI, Ope a ionali y and Adap i i y oge he include he capabili ies equi ed o
be compe i i e. Ope a ionali y can be pai ed wi h o dina y capabili ies, and Adap i i y can
be pai ed wi h dynamic capabili ies (Chikán e al. 2022). Ma ke pe o mance is concei ed
as he ewa d o he co ec combina ion o i m capabili ies. I is pa icula ly impo an
as a i m can ha e high Adap abili y and Ope a ionali y sco es bu i i canno con e
hem o e enue, i will no be compe i i e (Chikán 2006). The Fi m Compe i i eness Index
is widely used in esea ch ocused on medium-sized o la ge companies (Chikán 2006;
Losonci and Bo sos 2015;Chikán e al. 2022;S ocke and Vá konyi 2022).
Sze b (2010) s a es ha al hough he de ini ion o Chikán can be used e ec i ely, i is
a he applicable o medium-sized and la ge en e p ises. Thus, Sze b cons uc ed ano he
compe i i eness measu emen based a ound mainly he SME sec o . Howe e , he wo in-
dices a e no compe ing wi h, bu a he complemen ing each o he (Sze b 2010). In Sze b’s
s eam, “compe i i eness is he mu ually dependen bundle o en pilla s—human capi al,
p oduc , domes ic ma ke , ne wo ks, echnology, decision-making, s a egy, ma ke ing,
in e na ionaliza ion and online p esence— ha allow a i m o e ec i ely compe e wi h
o he i ms and se e cus ome s wi h alued goods/se ices.” (Lau en e e al. 2020b, p. 560).
The cons uc ed Compe i i eness Index (CI) is widely used in SME esea ch: Lau en e
e al. (2020a) used he index on 103 knowledge-in ensi e business se ice i ms o cons uc
implica ions o op imizing business compe i i eness; Má kus and Rideg (2021) s udied
he ela ionship be ween he compe i i eness and he inancial pe o mance o Hunga ian
SME-s; Lányi e al. (2021) in es iga ed he e ec o online p esence and ac i i y on SME
business pe o mance and compe i i eness; D oule ýand Blažko á(2021) used he index
o de e mine he d i e s o compe i i eness o Czech SMEs; De Mon euil Ca mona and
Gomes (2021) used his amewo k o de e mine he le el o compe i i eness o B azilian
i ms.
3. Ma e ials and Me hods
The aim o his s udy is o iden i y he in luence o op manage ial pe cep ion abou
he ex e nal en i onmen on he i m-le el compe i i eness o medium-sized and la ge
in e na ionalized companies. We selec ed Hunga y as he con ex o ou s udy as in he
las decade i has con en ious ins i u ional con ex s, and we posed he esea ch ques ion o
whe he op manage ial pe cep ion o he ex e nal en i onmen has a de imen al in luence
on hei company’s compe i i eness o no . We selec ed in e na ionalized medium and
la ge en e p ises, as hese companies a e compe ing in he in e na ional ma ke (mos ly
Eu opean ma ke s bu o e seas as well) and he e o e hei manage s ha e a b oade
pe spec i e and hese companies ha e a signi ican sha e in he coun y’s GDP.
As he popula ion o his s udy is medium-sized and la ge companies, he li e a u e
shows (Sze b 2010;Chikán e al. 2022;S ocke and Vá konyi 2022) ha he usage o FCI
will be adequa e o measu e i m-le el compe i i eness. Based on he esea ch ques ion
and on he li e a u e e iew we hypo hesized he ollowing:
Hypo hesis 1 (H1): The pe cei ed mac o en i onmen has a posi i e associa ion wi h he
i m-le el compe i i eness o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge companies.
Hypo hesis 2 (H2): The pe cei ed mac o en i onmen has a posi i e associa ion wi h he
Ope a ionali y o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge companies.
Hypo hesis 3 (H3): The pe cei ed mac o en i onmen has a posi i e associa ion wi h he
Adap i i y o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge companies.
Hypo hesis 4 (H4): The pe cei ed mac o en i onmen has a posi i e associa ion wi h he
ma ke pe o mance o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge companies.
Fo da a collec ion, he su ey me hod was selec ed and he al eady es ablished
En e p ise Compe i i eness Su ey was conduc ed in 2019 in Hunga y ( o he six h ime
Adm. Sci. 2024,14, 116 6 o 16
a e 1996, 1999, 2004, 2009, and 2013). The su ey assessed he pe cep ions o op manage s
o Hunga ian companies which employ a leas 50 employees in selec ed indus ies and
was complemen ed wi h he inancial epo o he gi en companies om 2013 o 2018.
Pe cep ion- ype ques ions we e mos ly measu ed in he Like scale. A e da a cleansing,
he da abase consis ed o 209 alid company en ies.
As his pape ocuses on in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge companies, s a is-
ical de ini ions we e used as he basis o include only medium-sized and la ge companies,
and hose companies which ealized expo sales we e pe cei ed as in e na ionalized as his
p oxy could be compa ed wi h he s a is ical da a o he popula ion. A e hese selec ion
c i e ia, he sample was na owed o n= 119 i ms. Ex eme sco es we e sc eened wi h
Mahalanobis dis ance (mul i a ia e) calcula ion and hose cases we e dele ed which had
a chi squa e dis ibu ion p obabili y o less han 0.001 acco ding o Hai (2018). Wi h
hese me hod 12 mul i a ia e ou lie s excluded om he analysis, 107 medium and la ge
in e na ionalized companies emained in he inal sample. The desc ip i e s a is ics o he
used a iables and he indus y and sec o dis ibu ion can be seen in Tables A1 and A2 in
Appendix A.
The equi ed sample size was de e mined wi h GPowe 3.1.9.7 acco ding o Faul e al.
(2009). The ollowing pa ame e s we e used in he calcula ion: E ec size: 0.15,
α
e o
p obabili y: 0.05, Powe (1-
β
): 0.80 and he numbe o p edic o s was se o 5 as he ac o
model con e ged in o i e ac o s. Acco ding o GPowe calcula ion, he equi ed sample
size is 92 wi h an ac ual powe o 0.8041921.
As he sample size is highe han he expec ed sample size and he dis ibu ion o he
sample based on size and expo is e y simila o he popula ion (see Table 1), he sample
can be concei ed as sizeable enough and ep esen a i e o he size o he i m.
Table 1. The dis ibu ion o he sample and he popula ion based on i m size. Sou ce: Au ho s’
Edi ion based on su ey da a and on (Hunga ian Cen al S a is ical O ice 2022).
Sample Popula ion
Amoun % Amoun %
In e na ionalized medium-sized i ms 78 73% 2587 78%
In e na ionalized la ge-sized i ms 29 27% 723 22%
Sum: 107 100% 3310 100%
Fo s a is ical calcula ions, SPSS 29 was used, combined wi h Omega expansion
package om Hayes (Hayes and Cou s 2020), and he signi icance le el was se o p< 0.05.
Fo independen a iables, 20 a iables we e selec ed and es ed o co ela ion (co ela ion
ma ix can be seen in Table A3 o Appendix A) wi h p omising esul s, hus making hem
a o able o ac o analysis, widely used in his a ea o esea ch o me ge mac oeconomic
indica o s o be e analysis.
The no mali y o he sample was analyzed by he Shapi o–Wilk es , which showed
ha he independen a iables in he da ase a e no no mally dis ibu ed; he e o e, o he
ac o analysis, we used he p incipal axis ac o ing (PAF) me hod, he c i e ia o making a
ac o was an eigen alue o 1, and a imax o a ion was used o a oid mul icollinea i y.
The ac o model included 5 ac o s, which explain 70.965% o he o al a iance, he KMO
measu e was 0.771 (p< 0.001), and all ac o s had e y high eliabili y, based on hei
ω
sco es (see in Table 2 o each ac o ). The h eshold o he ac o loading was se
o 0.5 (based on Hai 2018), and ac o loadings can be seen in Table 2. Communali ies
o he ex ac ion we e high o medium wi h 0.861 as he highes and 0.425 he lowes
communali y.
Adm. Sci. 2024,14, 116 7 o 16
Table 2. Fac o s o he pe cei ed mac o en i onmen . Sou ce: Au ho s’ Edi ion based on SPSS
calcula ions.
I ems o Su ey
In luence o . . .
Fac o
Ci il Se ice and
Educa ion
(ω= 0.850)
Domes ic Poli ical
En i onmen
(ω= 0.788)
Ma ke T ends and
Ad ancemen s
(ω= 0.842)
P ice Le el
(ω= 0.785)
Social and Ecological
Expec a ions
(ω= 0.809)
legal egula ion and policy
expec a ion 0.915 0.010 0.133 −0.074 0.016
cen al adminis a ion 0.732 0.108 0.038 0.106 −0.002
local adminis a ion 0.627 0.087 0.005 0.311 0.053
oca ional educa ion 0.615 0.172 0.033 0.376 0.160
highe educa ion 0.592 0.112 −0.076 0.247 0.044
economic policy −0.021 0.789 0.133 0.072 0.114
gene al ope a ion o he
cu en go e nmen 0.150 0.696 0.094 −0.078 0.030
gene al poli ical en i onmen 0.200 0.641 0.229 −0.064 0.048
gene al economic
en i onmen 0.079 0.510 0.324 0.210 0.096
in e na ional ma ke ends 0.036 0.297 0.804 0.090 0.139
echnological ad ancemen s 0.046 0.219 0.804 0.020 0.169
domes ic ma ke ends −0.002 0.478 0.561 0.174 −0.062
in la ion 0.151 0.032 0.055 0.774 0.005
wage a e 0.314 0.018 0.126 0.615 0.190
exchange a e ola ili y 0.429 −0.073 0.125 0.608 0.095
ecological en i onmen 0.034 0.072 0.155 0.038 0.857
social expec a ions 0.169 0.049 0.194 0.090 0.840
cus ome expec a ions −0.075 0.214 −0.299 0.416 0.535
Ex ac ion Me hod: p incipal axis ac o ing. Ro a ion Me hod: Va imax wi h Kaise No maliza ion.
In he ac o analysis, he ollowing ac o s we e iden i ied: Ci il se ice and educa ion
(
ω
= 0.850), Domes ic poli ical en i onmen (
ω
= 0.788), Ma ke ends and ad ancemen s
(
ω
= 0.842), P ice le el (
ω
= 0.785), Social and ecological expec a ions (
ω
= 0.809). The
ac o s a e well di e en ia ed om each o he while he a iables in he ce ain g oups
belong oge he no only s a is ically bu in meaning as well, hus alida ing he consis ency
o he esponses gi en. These ac o s we e la e used as independen a iables in he (OLS)
linea eg ession analysis (en e me hod) o which he s a is ical equi emen s we e me
o each model.
4. Resul s
The es ablished pe cei ed mac oen i onmen al ac o s’ in luence on i m-le el com-
pe i i eness and i s sub-indices can be seen in Table 3.
Rega ding he i m compe i i eness index, he in luence o he pe cei ed mac o en i-
onmen is signi ican (p= 0.025); howe e , he explana o y powe o he model (R
2
= 0.139)
is qui e weak. Inside he model, ci il se ice and educa ion has a signi ican , s ong (2.452)
posi i e associa ion wi h FCI, which means ha he mo e in luence manage s pe cei e
ci il se ice and he educa ion sys em o ha e, he mo e compe i i e hei companies a e,
mos likely because he highe he educa ional le el is, he highe he added alue o hei
employees is.
Acco ding o he esul s, H1 is suppo ed; he pe cei ed mac o en i onmen is posi-
i ely associa ed wi h he i m-le el compe i i eness o in e na ionalized medium-sized
and la ge companies, and ci il se ice and educa ion has a s ong, signi ican associa ion
wi h i m-le el compe i i eness.
Fo he Ope a ionali y componen , he eg ession model is signi ican (p= 0.012) and
he explana o y powe o he model is R
2
= 0.149. Inside he model, ci il se ice and
educa ion has a signi ican posi i e associa ion (0.143) wi h he Ope a ionali y o he i ms.
I is in e es ing o see, howe e , ha i he signi icance le el would ha e been se o >0.1,
hen p ice le el would ha e had a sligh posi i e associa ion as well. We can in e p e hese
esul s as he mo e in luence manage s pe cei e ci il se ice and he educa ion sys em
o ha e, he be e hei Ope a ionali y is; his ac o ’s associa ion is signi ican ly weake
Adm. Sci. 2024,14, 116 8 o 16
han wi h FCI, mos likely because he educa ion leg o he ac o in luences Ope a ionali y
and he ci il se ice leg much less. We ied o build a ac o model wi hou ei he he
ci il sec o o he educa ional a iables o be able o di e en ia e hei impac , bu nei he
o he models we e alid; in he i s model, he ac o ex ac ion was no success ul, and
in he second model, he a iables had c oss-loadings. I is unde s andable, howe e ,
ha educa ion and ci il se ice a iables a e connec ed as in Hunga y bo h highe and
oca ional educa ion is s ongly go e ned by he gi en minis y o he go e nmen .
Table 3. Reg ession models. Sou ce: Au ho s’ Edi ion based on SPSS calcula ions.
Va iable/Measu e Model 1—Fi m
Compe i i eness Index (FCI)
Model
2—Ope a ionali y (O)
Model 3—Adap i i y
(A)
Model 4—Ma ke
Pe o mance (MP)
cons . 28.301 *** 3.735 *** 3.740 *** 3.748 ***
Ci il se ice and
educa ion 2.452 ** 0.143 ** 0.168 ** 0.193 **
Domes ic poli ical
en i onmen
−0.575 −0.044 −0.047 −0.038
Ma ke ends and
ad ancemen s 0.095 −0.036 −0.044 0.070
P ice le el 0.186 0.089, 0.092, −0.071
Social and ecological
expec a ions 0.690 0.070 0.174 ** −0.014
R20.139 0.149 0.242 0.105
F s a is ics F = 2.873
p= 0.020 *
F = 3.146
p= 0.012 *
F = 5.750
p= 0.001 ***
F = 2.070
p= 0.077,
Du bin–Wa son 2.021 1.876 1.978 1.865
Signi icance codes: 0 ‘***’ 0.01 ‘**’ 0.05 ‘*’ 0.1 ‘,’.
Acco ding o he esul s, H2 is suppo ed; he pe cei ed mac o en i onmen has a
posi i e associa ion wi h he Ope a ionali y o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge
companies, and ci il se ice and educa ion ha e a sligh signi ican posi i e associa ion
wi h i m-le el compe i i eness.
Rega ding Adap i i y, he eg ession model is signi ican (p= 0.001) and he explana-
o y powe o he model is R
2
= 0.242, which is he s onges explana o y powe unde he
in es iga ed models. Inside he model, social and ecological expec a ions ha e a signi ican
posi i e associa ion (0.174) wi h he Adap i i y o i ms, ollowed by he signi ican posi i e
associa ion wi h ci il se ice and educa ion (0.168), whe eas he in luence o p ice le el
would ha e been signi ican i he signi icance would ha e been se o 0.10. These esul s
show ha he mo e in luence manage s pe cei e social and ecological expec a ions, as well
as educa ion and ci il se ice o ha e, he mo e adap i e hei companies a e.
Acco ding o he esul s, H3 is suppo ed; he pe cei ed mac o en i onmen has
a posi i e associa ion wi h he Adap i i y o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge
companies, and bo h social and ecological expec a ions and ci il se ice and educa ion
ha e a posi i e associa ion wi h i m Adap i i y.
In he case o ma ke pe o mance, he eg ession model would ha e only been
signi ican i he signi icance le el would ha e been se o <0.1 (p= 0.077); he e o e, H4 is
ejec ed; he pe cei ed mac o en i onmen does no ha e a posi i e associa ion wi h he
ma ke pe o mance o in e na ionalized medium-sized and la ge companies.
The esul s o he eg ession models we e in line wi h ou expec a ions. The pe cei ed
mac o en i onmen in luences i m-le el compe i i eness, bu no all o i s sub-indices, as
ma ke pe o mance was no signi ican ly associa ed. The mo e impo ance manage s ha e
placed on ci il se ice and educa ion, he be e hei companies’ Adap i i y, Ope a ionali y,
and compe i i eness we e, mos likely because o he g ea e skilled labo hey employed,
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