IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/sagope/v11y2021i1p2158244021996702.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Does Intellectual Capital Spur Sustainable Competitive Advantage and Sustainable Growth?: A Study of Chinese and Pakistani Firms

Author

Listed:
  • Yuqiu Lu
  • Guowei Li
  • Zhe Luo
  • Muhammad Anwar
  • Yunju Zhang

Abstract

Steered by the resource-based view theory, this study scrutinizes the impact of the dimensions of Intellectual Capital (IC)—human capital, structural capital, and relational capital (RC)—on sustainable growth (SG) with the mediating role of Sustainable Competitive Advantage (SCA). We gathered data from 2010 to 2017 of 90 listed firms of China and Pakistan, respectively, and applied EVIEWS. The results indicate that IC plays a significant role in the SG of Chinese and Pakistani firms. IC has a significant influence on differentiation strategy (DS) in Chinese firms whereas only RC has an insignificant influence on DS in Pakistani firms. IC has a significant influence on cost leadership strategy (CLS) in Pakistani firms whereas structural and RC have an insignificant influence on the SG of Chinese firms. In terms of the mediating role, DS partially mediates the relationship between IC and SG in Pakistani firms while it only fully mediates the path between RC and SG in Chinese firms. CLS partially mediates the relationship between IC and SG in Chinese firms while it fully mediates the association between human capital and SG in Pakistani firms. This study recommends Chinese and Pakistani firms to encourage investment in IC to gain SCA and SG in the turbulent markets. To concise, this research advises Chinese firms to invest a satisfactory amount in human capital as compared with structural and RC. However, Pakistani firms should focus on IC to gain SCA and SG.

Suggested Citation

  • Yuqiu Lu & Guowei Li & Zhe Luo & Muhammad Anwar & Yunju Zhang, 2021. "Does Intellectual Capital Spur Sustainable Competitive Advantage and Sustainable Growth?: A Study of Chinese and Pakistani Firms," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440219, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:sagope:v:11:y:2021:i:1:p:2158244021996702
    DOI: 10.1177/2158244021996702
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2158244021996702
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/2158244021996702?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Priyanka Jain & Vishal Vyas & Ankur Roy, 2017. "Exploring the mediating role of intellectual capital and competitive advantage on the relation between CSR and financial performance in SMEs," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 13(1), pages 1-23, March.
    2. Kyungtag Lee & Hyunchul Lee, 2019. "How Does CSR Activity Affect Sustainable Growth and Value of Corporations? Evidence from Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-11, January.
    3. Abdifatah Ahmed Haji & Nazli Anum Mohd Ghazali, 2018. "The role of intangible assets and liabilities in firm performance: empirical evidence," Journal of Applied Accounting Research, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 19(1), pages 42-59, February.
    4. Sher Zaman Khan & Qing Yang & Abdul Waheed, 2019. "Investment in intangible resources and capabilities spurs sustainable competitive advantage and firm performance," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(2), pages 285-295, March.
    5. Salman Ali & Guihua Li & Ping Yang & Kramat Hussain & Yousaf Latif, 2020. "Unpacking the importance of intangible skills in new product development and sustainable business performance; strategies for marketing managers," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(9), pages 1-26, September.
    6. Yu-Shan Chen, 2008. "The Positive Effect of Green Intellectual Capital on Competitive Advantages of Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 77(3), pages 271-286, February.
    7. Frank Sampong & Na Song & Kingsley Osei Boahene & Kwame Ansong Wadie, 2018. "Disclosure of CSR Performance and Firm Value: New Evidence from South Africa on the Basis of the GRI Guidelines for Sustainability Disclosure," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-28, November.
    8. Vikrant Shirodkar & Alexander T. Mohr, 2015. "Resource Tangibility and Foreign Firms’ Corporate Political Strategies in Emerging Economies: Evidence from India," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 55(6), pages 801-825, December.
    9. Chiara Demartini & Sara Trucco, 2016. "Does Intellectual Capital Disclosure Matter for Audit Risk? Evidence from the UK and Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(9), pages 1-19, August.
    10. Hongxing Yao & Muhammad Haris & Gulzara Tariq & Hafiz Mustansar Javaid & Muhammad Aamir Shafique Khan, 2019. "Intellectual Capital, Profitability, and Productivity: Evidence from Pakistani Financial Institutions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-30, July.
    11. Salvi, Antonio & Vitolla, Filippo & Giakoumelou, Anastasia & Raimo, Nicola & Rubino, Michele, 2020. "Intellectual capital disclosure in integrated reports: The effect on firm value," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    12. McDowell, William C. & Peake, Whitney O. & Coder, LeAnne & Harris, Michael L., 2018. "Building small firm performance through intellectual capital development: Exploring innovation as the “black box”," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 88(C), pages 321-327.
    13. Arup Mitra & Chandan Sharma & Marie-Ange Véganzonès-Varoudakis, 2016. "Infrastructure, Information and Communication Technology and Firms’ Productive Performance of the Indian Manufacturing," Post-Print halshs-01293608, HAL.
    14. Jian Xu & Binghan Wang, 2018. "Intellectual Capital, Financial Performance and Companies’ Sustainable Growth: Evidence from the Korean Manufacturing Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-15, December.
    15. Muhammad Ahmad & Naveed Ahmed, 2016. "Testing the relationship between intellectual capital and a firm's performance: an empirical investigation regarding financial industries of Pakistan," International Journal of Learning and Intellectual Capital, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 13(2/3), pages 250-272.
    16. Balsam, Steven & Fernando, Guy D. & Tripathy, Arindam, 2011. "The impact of firm strategy on performance measures used in executive compensation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 64(2), pages 187-193, February.
    17. Yongfu Li & Yu Song & Jinxin Wang & Chengwei Li, 2019. "Intellectual Capital, Knowledge Sharing, and Innovation Performance: Evidence from the Chinese Construction Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-20, May.
    18. Rossi, Cesare & Cricelli, Livio & Grimaldi, Michele & Greco, Marco, 2016. "The strategic assessment of intellectual capital assets: An application within Terradue Srl," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(5), pages 1598-1603.
    19. Maury, Benjamin, 2018. "Sustainable competitive advantage and profitability persistence: Sources versus outcomes for assessing advantage," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 100-113.
    20. Ferreira, Jorge & Coelho, Arnaldo & Moutinho, Luiz, 2020. "Dynamic capabilities, creativity and innovation capability and their impact on competitive advantage and firm performance: The moderating role of entrepreneurial orientation," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 92.
    21. Raed Kareem Kanaan & Ulya Nawaf Obeidat & Bader Yousef Obeidat & Mohammad Orsan Al-Zu'bi & Mohammd Abuhashesh, 2020. "The Effect of Intellectual Capital on Competitive Advantage in the Jordanian Telecommunication Sector," Journal of Business & Management (COES&RJ-JBM), , vol. 8(1), pages 1-19, January.
    22. Muhammad Nadeem & Christopher Gan & Cuong Nguyen, 2018. "The Importance of Intellectual Capital for Firm Performance: Evidence from Australia," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 28(3), pages 334-344, September.
    23. Asem Alkahtani & Norfarah Nordin & Rizwan Ullah Khan, 2020. "Does government support enhance the relation between networking structure and sustainable competitive performance among SMEs?," Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 9(1), pages 1-16, December.
    24. Khushbakht Hina & Noor Hazlina Ahmad & Muhammad Khalique & Imran Khan, 2020. "Intellectual capital in SMEs of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan," International Journal of Learning and Intellectual Capital, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 17(3), pages 267-279.
    25. Mladen Djuric & Jovan Filipovic, 2015. "Human and Social Capital Management Based on Complexity Paradigm: Implications for Various Stakeholders and Sustainable Development," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 23(6), pages 343-354, December.
    26. Wang, Chao-Hung, 2014. "How relational capital mediates the effect of corporate reputation on competitive advantage: Evidence from Taiwan high-tech industry," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 167-176.
    27. Ya-Hui Ling, 2013. "The influence of intellectual capital on organizational performance—Knowledge management as moderator," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 30(3), pages 937-964, September.
    28. Kibeshi Kiyabo & Nsubili Isaga, 2020. "Entrepreneurial orientation, competitive advantage, and SMEs’ performance: application of firm growth and personal wealth measures," Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 9(1), pages 1-15, December.
    29. Jovan Grahovac & Douglas J. Miller, 2009. "Competitive advantage and performance: the impact of value creation and costliness of imitation," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(11), pages 1192-1212, November.
    30. Qianwei Ying & Hazrat Hassan & Habib Ahmad, 2019. "The Role of a Manager’s Intangible Capabilities in Resource Acquisition and Sustainable Competitive Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-20, January.
    31. Chang, Woojung & Ellinger, Alexander E. & Kim, Kyoungmi (Kate) & Franke, George R., 2016. "Supply chain integration and firm financial performance: A meta-analysis of positional advantage mediation and moderating factors," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 282-295.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Khan, Rizwan Ullah & Richardson, Christopher & Salamzadeh, Yashar, 2022. "Spurring competitiveness, social and economic performance of family-owned SMEs through social entrepreneurship; a multi-analytical SEM & ANN perspective," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    2. Edi Suandi & Herri & Yulihasri & Syafrizal, 2023. "Evaluating the relationship between entrepreneurial marketing, competitive advantage, and Islamic banks performance," Journal of Financial Services Marketing, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 28(3), pages 599-614, September.
    3. Md. Sohel Rana & Syed Zabid Hossain, 2023. "Intellectual Capital, Firm Performance, and Sustainable Growth: A Study on DSE-Listed Nonfinancial Companies in Bangladesh," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-23, April.
    4. Wadim Strielkowski & Aida Guliyeva & Ulviyya Rzayeva & Elena Korneeva & Anna Sherstobitova, 2021. "Mathematical Modeling of Intellectual Capital and Business Efficiency of Small and Medium Enterprises," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 9(18), pages 1-21, September.
    5. Rafał Prusak & Edyta Kardas, 2024. "The Analysis of Mutual Relations and Dependencies of Intellectual Capital Components in Polish Enterprises in the Context of Sustainability Goals," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(18), pages 1-28, September.
    6. Keonhyeong Lee & Liyuan Wang, 2023. "Chinese High-Tech Export Performance: Effects of Intellectual Capital Mediated by Dynamic and Risk Management Capabilities," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(1), pages 21582440231, February.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Muhammad Anwar & Sher Zaman Khan & Najib Ullah Khan, 2018. "Intellectual Capital, Entrepreneurial Strategy and New Ventures Performance: Mediating Role of Competitive Advantage," Business & Economic Review, Institute of Management Sciences, Peshawar, Pakistan, vol. 10(1), pages 63-94, March.
    2. Camelia Oprean-Stan & Sebastian Stan & Vasile Brătian, 2020. "Corporate Sustainability and Intangible Resources Binomial: New Proposal on Intangible Resources Recognition and Evaluation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-23, May.
    3. Quan Tran & Anh‐Tuan Doan & Thao Tran, 2022. "What are the drivers of SMEs' financial performance? The interaction of intellectual capital and ownership," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 61(4), pages 751-777, December.
    4. Mostafa A. Ali & Nazimah Hussin & Hossam Haddad & Dina Alkhodary & Ahmad Marei, 2021. "Dynamic Capabilities and Their Impact on Intellectual Capital and Innovation Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-32, September.
    5. Nusrat Hafiz & Ahmad Shaharudin Abdul Latiff & Md Asadul Islam & Abu Naser Mohammad Saif & Sazali Abd Wahab, 2022. "Towards the Underlying Theories of Small Firm Growth: A Literature Review," FIIB Business Review, , vol. 11(1), pages 36-51, March.
    6. Francesco Gangi & Dario Salerno & Antonio Meles & Lucia Michela Daniele, 2019. "Do Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Governance Influence Intellectual Capital Efficiency?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(7), pages 1-25, March.
    7. Abeer Al-Khoury & Sahraa Anwer Hussein & Muthana Abdulwhab & Zainab M. Aljuboori & Hossam Haddad & Mostafa A. Ali & Ibtihal A. Abed & Hakeem Hammood Flayyih, 2022. "Intellectual Capital History and Trends: A Bibliometric Analysis Using Scopus Database," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(18), pages 1-22, September.
    8. Murat Ocak & Derya Fındık, 2019. "The Impact of Intangible Assets and Sub-Components of Intangible Assets on Sustainable Growth and Firm Value: Evidence from Turkish Listed Firms," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-23, September.
    9. Guowei Li & Zhe Luo & Muhammad Anwar & Yuqiu Lu & Xiantao Wang & Xuening Liu, 2020. "Intellectual capital and the efficiency of SMEs in the transition economy China; Do financial resources strengthen the routes?," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(7), pages 1-25, July.
    10. Md. Sohel Rana & Syed Zabid Hossain, 2023. "Intellectual Capital, Firm Performance, and Sustainable Growth: A Study on DSE-Listed Nonfinancial Companies in Bangladesh," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-23, April.
    11. Nayak, Bishwajit & Bhattacharyya, Som Sekhar & Krishnamoorthy, Bala, 2022. "Exploring the black box of competitive advantage – An integrated bibliometric and chronological literature review approach," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 964-982.
    12. Sher Zaman Khan & Qing Yang & Abdul Waheed, 2019. "Investment in intangible resources and capabilities spurs sustainable competitive advantage and firm performance," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(2), pages 285-295, March.
    13. Chanchai Phonthanukitithaworn & Wutthiya Aekthanate Srisathan & Chavis Ketkaew & Phaninee Naruetharadhol, 2023. "Sustainable Development towards Openness SME Innovation: Taking Advantage of Intellectual Capital, Sustainable Initiatives, and Open Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-24, January.
    14. Chao Hung Wang & Wei‐Jr Juo, 2021. "An environmental policy of green intellectual capital: Green innovation strategy for performance sustainability," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(7), pages 3241-3254, November.
    15. José Vale & Rafaela Miranda & Graça Azevedo & Maria C. Tavares, 2022. "The Impact of Sustainable Intellectual Capital on Sustainable Performance: A Case Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-17, April.
    16. Miloš Hitka & Alžbeta Kucharčíková & Peter Štarchoň & Žaneta Balážová & Michal Lukáč & Zdenko Stacho, 2019. "Knowledge and Human Capital as Sustainable Competitive Advantage in Human Resource Management," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(18), pages 1-18, September.
    17. Jancenelle, Vivien E., 2021. "Tangible−Intangible resource composition and firm success," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    18. Xin Long Xu & Jianping Li & Dengsheng Wu & Xi Zhang, 2021. "The intellectual capital efficiency and corporate sustainable growth nexus: comparison from agriculture, tourism and renewable energy sector," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(11), pages 16038-16056, November.
    19. Ioniţă Cătălin Gabriel, 2020. "The need for rethinking the model of assessing value in the digital economy context," Proceedings of the International Conference on Business Excellence, Sciendo, vol. 14(1), pages 170-181, July.
    20. Salman Ali & Guihua Li & Yousaf Latif, 2020. "Unleashing the importance of creativity, experience and intellectual capital in the adaptation of export marketing strategy and competitive position," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(11), pages 1-26, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:sagope:v:11:y:2021:i:1:p:2158244021996702. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.