Examining the Determinants of Sustainable Competitive Advantage:
A Systematic Literature Review
ABDUL SATAR
Department of Business Administration,
Faculty of Administrative Sciences,
University of Brawijaya,
Veteran Street, Ketawanggede, Lowokwaru District, Malang City, East Java 65145
INDONESIA
Abstract: - The purpose of this study is to know the certain of how current research on sustainable competitive
advantage has been conducted and to identify any research gaps that would be useful for future research in this
area. With the aid of VOSViewer and Bibliometrics software, this research is anticipated to produce
information in the form of elements that can affect sustainable competitive advantage. According to the data
gathered, publications for research on the subject of sustainable competitive advantage typically experience a
large increase. The determinant factors of Sustainable Competitive Advantage, namely Sustainability,
Competition, Sustainable Development, Innovation, and Competitive Advantage are expected to be examined
in further research.
Key-Words: - Sustainable Competitive Advantage; VOSViewer; Bibliometrics; Systematic Literature Review
Received: June 4, 2022. Revised: September 9, 2023. Accepted: October 7, 2023. Available online: November 13, 2023.
1 Introduction
Sustainable Competitive Advantage (SCA) refers to
an organization's ability to maintain its superior
market position over a long period, [1]. It is a
crucial concept in business strategy, focusing on
how organizations can create and sustain a
competitive advantage by utilizing their resources
and capabilities, [2]. To achieve SCA, an
organization must possess an advantage that is
difficult for competitors to replicate, such as
expertise in human resources, technology, brand,
market access, etc. This advantage must be
consistently upheld over time to establish a
sustainable competitive advantage. In a business
context, achieving SCA is a significant goal as it
offers benefits like increased market share,
profitability, and customer loyalty, [3]. Therefore,
organizations must innovate and maintain
excellence to compete successfully in the long run.
Understanding competitive advantage enables
companies to compete and maximize their potential
not only in the present but also continuously, [4].
This study aims to identify the factors that influence
Sustainable Competitive Advantage within a
company.
To sustain a competitive advantage, a company
must adopt a strategy that is also sustainable. When
selecting a sustainable strategy, the company should
consider three main factors: overall cost leadership,
differentiation through unique products targeted at
various customer groups, and catering to specific
consumer needs through financing and
differentiation approaches, [5]. Sustainable
Competitive Advantage (SCA) is achieved when a
company possesses valuable, unique resources that
cannot be imitated or substituted, resulting in a
competitive advantage (CA), [6] Valuable resources
for a company include human resources and
technology, which contribute to a strong SCA. Thus,
SCA depends on human resources and technology,
while SC relies on the company's market position.
Sustainable Competitive Advantage denotes a
company's superior position for upcoming years,
characterized by a profitability value greater than
the industry average, [7]. To maintain this
advantage, companies must develop strategies that
sustain performance and profitability in the future.
Several actions can help a company surpass its
competitors, such as establishing an extensive
distribution channel, building a positive reputation,
owning patents, offering superior and high-quality
products, having skilled employees and
management, and more, [8]. Another study by, [9],
emphasizes the importance of properly managing
technology, economic opportunities and risks, and
social environmental factors for long-term impact.
The current research utilizes the systematic
literature review method along with VOSViewer
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and Bibliometrics software to investigate factors
influencing Sustainable Competitive Advantage in
companies. VOSViewer enables analysis of search
results, bibliographic databases, and scientific
publications, while Bibliometrics aids in visualizing
and analyzing bibliographic data to understand
relationships between publications, citations,
authors, and research areas. These tools facilitate
research development, strategic decision-making,
and scientific performance appraisal. The findings
from this research will provide valuable information
for companies to determine strategies that address
global market challenges. Consequently, the study
on "Determinants of Sustainable Competitive
Advantage" serves as a reference for future research
endeavors.
2 Literature Review & Methods
2.1 Sustainable Competitive Advantage
Concept
Competitive advantage refers to a company's
capacity to outperform other businesses in the same
industry or market thanks to its unique qualities and
resources, [10]. The various actions a business takes
to create, produce, promote, provide, and support its
product provide it a competitive advantage.
Improving product quality, price, promotion, and
service quality are all things a business may do to
develop a competitive strategy. The three
components of the process of competitive
advantage, according to, [11], are:
1) Sources of excellence include: a) Superb skills,
used so that businesses can choose and put into
practice strategies that can set the organization
apart from rivals; b) Superior resources, which
include production capacity, marketing prowess,
technology, and natural resources, as well as
having a strong distribution network, are a
dimension to strengthen excellence; c) Superior
control is the capacity to track and assess
corporate outcomes and operations.
2) Positional benefit: Cost leadership or product
differentiation that offers clients higher value
produces positional advantage.
3) Performance results: Performance results will
happen if the company's skills, resources, and
control capabilities are employed to achieve cost
advantages since these advantages will lead to
profitable performance results like customer
satisfaction.
Companies strive to achieve sustainable
competitive advantage to maintain their growth and
prosperity, [12]. According to, [13], sustainable
competitive advantages are organizational
capabilities that enable higher performance
compared to other companies in the same market.
The study, [14], defines sustainable competitive
advantages as continuously developed
organizational capabilities supported by internal
resources, including organizational structure,
financial strength, internal motivation, and
information technology. These capabilities
contribute to the creation of strengths, innovations,
and competitiveness in the global market.
Having a competitive advantage is essential for
a company, as it prevents competitors from
duplicating its resources and activities, [6]. This
advantage encompasses various aspects, such as
resources and operational activities, [15]. Based on
the aforementioned theories, sustainable competitive
advantages can be seen as the organization's ability
to create something difficult for competitors to
achieve. Therefore, sustainable competitive
advantage is crucial for organizations or companies
to outperform their competitors in the same market,
[10]. Organizations or companies use this shield of
sustainable competitive advantage to lead in their
chosen areas. In the world of big business, where
competitors strive to be the best, those with a
sustainable competitive advantage will shine the
brightest. So, for a company looking to do better
than its competitors and succeed in a busy
marketplace, developing and maintaining a
sustainable competitive advantage isn't just a
choice—it's a critical plan for winning.
2.2 Methods
This study utilizes the VOSViewer software and
bibliometrics as part of the Systematic Literature
Review (SLR) method. VOSViewer is a software
tool designed to visualize and analyze large sets of
data, particularly bibliometric data. Developed by
Nees Jan van Eck and Ludo Waltman at the Delft
University of Technology in the Netherlands,
VOSViewer has been widely used in various fields,
including science, engineering, medicine, and
humanities.
VOSViewer is capable of analyzing search
results from search engines, bibliographic databases,
and other data related to scientific publications. By
employing bibliometric techniques and network
mapping, VOSViewer allows users to visualize and
analyze the relationships among specific
publications, citations, authors, and research fields.
Noteworthy features of VOSViewer include
mapping publication networks, identifying
interconnected groups, analyzing the citations and
impact of specific publications, and mapping
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research areas. Furthermore, VOSViewer can
analyze bibliometric data across different
dimensions, such as field of study, time, and
country. In this study, the researcher searched the
Scopus electronic database. Scopus was chosen due
to its reputation as the largest scientific database,
offering a wide range of peer-reviewed journal
articles, [16]. The scope of this research is limited to
English journal articles published within the last
five years, specifically from 2019 to 2023.
The steps taken in this study using Scopus and
RStudio are presented as follows:
1) Define search keywords. In this case, it is a
Sustainable Competitive Advantage.
2) Sustainable Competitive Advantage keywords
are searched based on the article title, abstract,
and keywords TITLE-ABS-KEY
(sustainability AND competitive AND
advantage) on Scopus.
3) Refine search results by enabling the filter
TITLE-ABS-KEY (sustainability AND
competitive AND advantage) AND (LIMIT-
TO (PUBYEAR, 2023) OR LIMIT-TO
(PUBYEAR, 2022) OR LIMIT-TO
(PUBYEAR, 2021) OR LIMIT-TO
(PUBYEAR, 2020) OR LIMIT-TO
(PUBYEAR, 2019)) AND (LIMIT-TO
(DOCTYPE, "ar")) AND (LIMIT-TO
(LANGUAGE, "English")).
4) Save search results in a file with the .bib
extension format
5) Compile data according to Research Questions
compiled with the help of Rstudio.
6) Download and install the latest version of
RStudio and R.
7) Open the RStudio app, and enter the code:
install.packages(“bibliometrix”)
library(bibliometrix)
biblioshiny()
Rstudio will redirect to the new link.
Files that have been saved are uploaded to the
page
8) Complete data analysis.
The following set of Research Questions (RQs)
has been formulated to explore advancements in
research on Sustainable Competitive Advantage:
RQ 1: What is the geographical distribution of
countries engaged in research on Sustainable
Competitive Advantage?
RQ 2: Which fields of study investigate Sustainable
Competitive Advantage?
RQ 3: How does the concept of Growth Resources
relate to research on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
RQ 4: What is the publication count of research
documents for each journal, categorized by their
relevance to the theme of Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
RQ 5: What is the impact of journals publishing
articles on the topic of Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
RQ 6: Who are the most significant authors in the
field of Sustainable Competitive Advantage?
RQ 7: Which authors have the highest number of
publications per year in the context of Sustainable
Competitive Advantage?
RQ 8: How can document keywords be analyzed in
research related to Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
RQ 9: What is the most prevalent keyword
associated with Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
RQ 10: Which keywords are the most dominant and
pertinent in research on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
RQ 11: How can the evolution of research themes
related to Sustainable Competitive Advantage be
analyzed?
RQ 12: What methods can be employed to analyze
thematic maps derived from document titles in
research focused on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
RQ 13: What are the key determining factors that
arise from research on the theme of Sustainable
Competitive Advantage?
Publish or Perish and VOSviewer software in
combination can be used to respond to RQs 4, 5, 6,
and 7. When conducting a review of the literature
for the subject under investigation—in this example,
Sustainable Competitive Advantage—Publish or
Perish is utilized, [17]. VOSViewer is a tool
designed for bibliometric creation. Because it can
handle huge data sets and display sizable
bibliometric maps, VOSviewer is commonly used,
[18]. The articles used in this study were published
for at least the previous five years, or from 2019 to
2023. The following actions need to be taken:
1) The search on Scopus was conducted using the
keyword "Sustainable Competitive Advantage"
within the timeframe of 2019 to 2023,
considering titles, abstracts, and keywords.
2) The articles found were saved as .RIS files.
3) VOSviewer software was utilized for data
visualization and trend analysis.
VOSviewer and bibliometrics offer valuable
tools for analyzing research contributions pertaining
to Sustainable Competitive Advantage (SCA). They
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provide several significant benefits in understanding
and exploring SCA-related research:
1) Identification of key concepts and
relationships: VOSviewer enables researchers
to analyze the meanings and relationships
among major concepts in SCA literature. This
aids in identifying research areas that require
further investigation and obtaining a
comprehensive understanding of the SCA
concept.
2) Recognition of research trends: Bibliometrics
assists in identifying research trends in SCA.
Researchers gain insights into the focal points
and advancements in SCA research during
recent years.
3) Identification of influential authors and
institutions: Bibliometrics allows researchers to
identify the most influential authors and
institutions in SCA research. This helps in
establishing potential research collaborations
for future investigations.
4) Recognition of prominent journals:
Bibliometrics enables the identification of
journals that contain a substantial amount of
SCA-related research. This assists researchers
in selecting appropriate journals for publishing
their own research findings.
5) The utilization of VOSviewer and bibliometrics
supports researchers in various aspects of SCA
research, including identifying relevant
research topics, understanding research trends,
establishing research collaborations, and
selecting suitable journals for publication.
3 Results & Discussion
On January 11, 2023, a search based on "Sustainable
Competitive Advantage" keywords was conducted
using search terms that were relevant to the article's
title, abstract, and keywords. The method of
searching articles in electronic databases is
employed as a source of information based on these
keywords. The electronic database used in this study
is the Scopus database.
3.1 Preliminary Search Results
The initial keyword search yielded 2940 Scopus
documents. During this initial search stage, there
was no limitation on the publication year. This was
done to trace the progression of research on the
topic of Sustainable Competitive Advantage. The
search results revealed that articles related to
Sustainable Competitive Advantage were first
identified in 1987, as indicated in Table 1. However,
it was determined that the research conducted in that
year was not relevant to the specific research
interest being pursued.
Table 1. Research Articles Related to Sustainable
Competitive Advantage
Authors
Title
Source
Moxon,
R.W
International
competition in
high
technology:
The Brazilian
aircraft
industry
International
Marketing
Reviews
4(2), pp. 7-
20
Choudhury,
Vivek
Sustained
Competitive
Advantage
With Inter-
Organizational
Information
Systems.
Proceedings
of the
Hawaii
International
Conference
on Systems
Science
pp. 44-51
Feeny, DF,
Ives, B.
In search of
sustainability:
Reaping long-
term
advantages
from
investments in
information
technology
Journal of
Management
Information
Systems
7(1)
3.2 Improvement of Search Results
The refinement of the search results involved
utilizing the "filter" feature based on the criteria
specified in this study. The Systematic Literature
Review followed three inclusion criteria (KI) to
refine the search results: 1) Documents published
within the last five years, specifically from 2019 to
2023; 2) The published documents should be in the
form of articles; 3) The articles should be written in
English.
After implementing these refinements, the
improved search results can be saved in a .bib file
format for further analysis. A total of 969 articles
were found and published with the keyword
"Sustainable Competitive Advantage".
3.3 Description of Research Questions
Answers
Files that have been saved in the .bib extension are
analyzed using the help of RStudio by utilizing the
"bibliometrix" library. Data preparation is done
based on predetermined Research Questions.
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RQ1: What is the geographical distribution of
countries engaged in research on Sustainable
Competitive Advantage?
Fig. 1: Geographical Distribution Of Countries
Engaged In Research On Sustainable Competitive
Advantage
Figure 1 illustrates the countries engaged in
research on Sustainable Competitive Advantage,
ranked in the following order: China, United States,
Spain, United Kingdom, India, Malaysia, Italy,
Indonesia, Australia, and Taiwan. From the figure, it
is evident that China has the highest number of
articles focusing on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage, with over 125 articles. The United
States holds the second position with nearly 86
articles. Indonesia, on the other hand, occupies the
eighth position, with 46 articles discussing
sustainable competitive advantage. This information
highlights the participation of developed countries
like the United States, Spain, the United Kingdom,
and Australia, as well as developing countries such
as India, Malaysia, and Italy.
RQ2: Which fields of study investigate Sustainable
Competitive Advantage?
Fig. 2: Thematic Evolution
Figure 2 demonstrates that the field of Business,
Management, and Accounting has conducted the
most research on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage, accounting for 17.6% of the total.
Following closely behind is the field of Social
Science at 17.5%, and Environmental Science ranks
third with 17.2%. The energy sector contributes
13.1% of the research, while engineering represents
10.4%. Other fields make up less than 10% each.
Based on Figure 2, it is apparent that the fields
of Business, Management, and Accounting, as well
as Social Science and Environmental Science,
consistently engage in research on Sustainable
Competitive Advantage compared to other fields.
These percentages have remained relatively stable
over the years. Furthermore, it is worth noting that
other fields such as Engineering, Computer Science,
Economics, Agricultural Sciences, and
Mathematics, among others, also contribute to
research on Sustainable Competitive Advantage,
albeit to a lesser extent.
RQ3: How does the concept of Growth Resources
relate to research on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
Fig. 3: Growth Sources
This study also examines the development of
journals as sources of research on Sustainable
Competitive Advantage. Figure 3 illustrates the
annual publication trends of each journal from 2019
to 2023. This overview enables us to observe
whether these journals have experienced an increase
or decrease in publications specifically related to the
theme of Sustainable Competitive Advantage. The
curve indicates that research on Sustainable
Competitive Advantage has shown fluctuating
growth in publications over the research period.
Based on the curve, it is evident that Business
Strategy and The Environment ranks first,
demonstrating significant growth from 2019 to 2023
and displaying potential for continued growth in the
future. On the other hand, the remaining four
journals—Frontiers in Psychology, International
Journal of Supply Management, Journal of Cleaner
Production, and Sustainability (Switzerland)—are
experiencing relatively consistent growth patterns.
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RQ4: What is the publication count of research
documents for each journal, categorized by their
relevance to the theme of Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
Fig. 4: Most Relevant Sources
Figure 4 presents the number of research
documents published by each journal, categorized
according to their relevance to the theme of
Sustainable Competitive Advantage. The data is
represented by a blue bar chart, displaying the
names of the most published journals and the
corresponding range of document quantities. The
intensity of the blue color indicates the quantity and
relevance of research themes. The total number of
documents published across all journals ranges from
0 to 237. Sustainability (Switzerland) occupies the
top position with a dark blue bar graph, indicating a
high quantity and relevance of published documents
compared to other journals. This is attributed to the
journal's alignment with the discussed theme.
As an illustration, one article published in
Sustainability (Switzerland) titled "Leadership and
Organizational Culture in the Sustainability of
Subsistence Small Businesses: An Intellectual
Capital-based View," was authored by Jardon and
Martinez-Cobas in 2019. The article examines the
relationship between culture and leadership in
generating performance through Sustainable
Competitive Advantage, utilizing partial least
squares techniques.
RQ5: What is the impact of journals publishing
articles on the topic of Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
Fig. 5: Impact Of Journals Publishing Articles
The assessment of journals in this research is
not solely based on the quantity or relevance of their
publications. The impact of each journal that
publishes papers on the theme of Sustainable
Competitive Advantage was also evaluated by
calculating their H-index, as depicted in Figure 5.
The figure presents the obtained H-index values
along with the impact generated by each journal.
The H-index range of the journals examined in this
study varies from 0 to 24. Sustainability
(Switzerland) and the Journal of Cleaner Production
claim the top two positions, with dark blue bars
indicating an H-index of 24 and 18, respectively.
Business Strategy and Environment and the
International Journal of Production Economics
follow in the third and fourth positions, with H-
index values of 12 and 5. Journals represented by
bright blue bars denote relatively lower impact.
Among the evaluated journals, Sustainability
(Switzerland) holds the highest impact. It is an
internationally recognized, interdisciplinary, open
access scholarly journal focusing on various
dimensions of human, environmental, cultural,
economic, and social sustainability. The journal
serves as an advanced platform for studies related to
sustainability and sustainable development. It
publishes reviews, regular research papers, short
communications, and notes, without any limitations
on paper length.
RQ6: Who are the most significant authors in the
field of Sustainable Competitive Advantage?
Fig. 6: Most Significant Authors
Figure 6 depicts the number of research
documents published by each author, categorized by
their relevance to the theme of Sustainable
Competitive Advantage. The data is presented in a
diagram, including a list of the most published
authors' names and the corresponding range of
document quantities. The intensity of the blue color
represents the quantity and relevance of the research
theme. Across all sources, the number of documents
published ranges from 0 to 7, with a total of 10
authors listed as the most relevant data sources. The
author Jermsittiparsert K occupies the top position
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with a total of 7 published documents. This is
evident from the dark blue bar graph, which stands
out compared to the others.
RQ7: Which authors have the highest number of
publications per year in the context of Sustainable
Competitive Advantage?
Fig. 7: Top Authors
Figure 7 illustrates the productivity of authors
throughout the research period, spanning from 2019
to 2023. The productivity is represented by a red
line, indicating the timeline of the author's research
publications until the last year of their contribution.
Furthermore, circles placed along the red line
indicate the number of papers published by the
author each year. The figure provides an overview
of authors who have written research on the theme
of Sustainable Competitive Advantage. Notably,
Zhang X is highlighted as an author who continues
to actively write research articles related to
Sustainable Competitive Advantage.
RQ8: How can document keywords be analyzed in
research related to Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
Fig. 8: Words Frequency
Figure 8 presents a growth curve depicting the
average occurrence of specific keywords in research
related to Sustainable Competitive Advantage each
year. The graph highlights the main keywords that
consistently appear from 2019 to 2023 and
demonstrate a notable increase over time. The
keywords primarily focus on sustainability-related
themes, such as China, Competition, Competitive
Advantage, Competitiveness, Decision Making,
Innovation, Strategic Approach, Supply Chain
Management, Sustainability, and Sustainable
Development. These keywords experienced the
most significant development throughout the
research period.
RQ9: What is the most prevalent keyword
associated with Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
Fig. 9: Most Prevalent Keywords
The word cloud visually represents the most
prevalent keywords in research on Sustainable
Competitive Advantage (Figure 9). It is a graphical
depiction of frequently occurring words within the
dataset of researched articles, using keywords
derived from titles focused on Sustainable
Competitive Advantage. The word cloud presents
words in varying sizes, reflecting their respective
frequencies. The positioning of words in the cloud is
generally random, except for the dominant word,
which is placed in the center and appears relatively
larger. For this study, the word cloud was generated
by analyzing document titles. Based on this
analysis, the most dominant words related to
Sustainable Competitive Advantage are
sustainability, sustainable development,
competition, competitive advantage, and
innovations. The prevalence of research on
sustainable competitive advantage underscores the
significance of sustainability as a determining factor
for future studies in this field.
RQ10: Which keywords are the most dominant and
pertinent in research on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
Fig. 10: Word Tree Map
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The word tree map presents relevant words from
an abstract document, visually displaying them in a
grid-like format where the size of each grid area
corresponds to the frequency of the word. In Figure
10, the dominant words in research on Sustainable
Competitive Advantage, such as sustainability,
sustainable development, competition, and
innovation, are depicted. The majority of the
research in this field revolves around sustainability,
emphasizing its importance for companies and
organizations to sustain their competitive advantage
over time.
3.4 Data Visualization
The VOSviewer software was utilized to perform
data visualization. In this section, a bibliometric
analysis was conducted to visualize the results based
on commonly occurring keywords. VOSviewer also
enables cluster analysis, which illustrates the
relationships among various topics, particularly in
the context of research on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage. This study has employed bibliometric
analysis to create three distinct visualizations:
network visualization, overlay visualization, and
density visualization. This will answer the RQ 11,
RQ12, and RQ13.
Fig. 11: Visualization of the Google Scholar
Database Network Using VOSviewer
The visualization of the keyword network
pertaining to research on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage reveals that the size of each circle
corresponds to the frequency of occurrence of the
respective keyword. Larger circles indicate
keywords that appear more frequently, highlighting
their importance in research. Among these
keywords, "sustainable competitive advantage"
emerges as the most prominently used, as indicated
by its larger circle size in the network. This signifies
its significance as a primary keyword in the research
topic of Sustainable Competitive Advantage (Figure
11).
RQ11: How can the evolution of research themes
related to Sustainable Competitive Advantage be
analyzed?
Fig. 12: Thematic Evolution
The research topic in papers changes,
particularly in newly published papers. Figure 12
presents an analysis of the evolution of themes
within research related to Sustainable Competitive
Advantage. This analysis is represented by
rectangular shapes, with larger sizes indicating more
frequent usage of a particular theme. The evolution
is divided into two sections. On the left side, several
themes that were predominantly used from 1990 to
2019 are listed, with three themes displayed in
varying sizes based on their frequency of use. The
top-ranked theme is articles, followed by
sustainability and sustainable development. In
contrast, from 2020 to 2023, five themes gained
significant usage, namely competitiveness,
sustainable development, competition,
sustainability, and ecology.
RQ12: What methods can be employed to analyze
thematic maps derived from document titles in
research focused on Sustainable Competitive
Advantage?
Fig. 13: Thematic Map
This study also examines the thematic maps
(Figure 13) that emerge based on the titles of
documents related to the research theme of
Sustainable Competitive Advantage, which are
divided into four quadrants. These results were
obtained using a semi-automatic algorithm that
reviewed the titles of all references in the research.
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1) The top-left quadrant represents highly
developed themes. This quadrant displays
specific themes that are rarely studied but
exhibit high development. It is characterized by
high density but low centrality. Themes in this
quadrant include sustainable development,
competition, and competitive advantage.
2) The lower-middle quadrant represents themes
that are decreasing over time. These themes
have been utilized for a long period but show a
declining trend, indicated by low density and
centrality. Themes in this quadrant include
sustainability, innovation, and strategic
approach.
3) The right-middle quadrant can be described as
a motor or driving theme. It is characterized by
high density and centrality, indicating its
importance for future research and
development. Themes appearing in this
quadrant include competitiveness, supply chain
management, and decision-making. This
quadrant is positioned between the upper-right
and lower-right quadrants.
Note: The upper-right and lower-right quadrants are
not specifically described in the given text.
RQ 13: What are the key determining factors that
arise from research on the theme of Sustainable
Competitive Advantage?
Based on the analysis of various bibliometric
data, several variables identified as highly relevant
in influencing Sustainable Competitive Advantage
are as follows.
Sustainability
Competitive
Advantage
Sustainability
Sustainable
Development
Competition
Innovation
Competitive
Advantage
Fig. 14: Determinants of Sustainable Competitive
Advantage
Based on a detailed study of various data from
academic sources, we've identified several important
factors that greatly influence Sustainable
Competitive Advantage. These factors are like key
building blocks that shape how businesses succeed
in today's competitive world. They include things
like Sustainability, Competition, Sustainable
Development, Innovation, and Competitive
Advantage.
We carefully looked at research papers,
references, and trends to figure this out. These
factors stand out as the main pillars that support the
idea of Sustainable Competitive Advantage. Think
of it like a strong foundation for a building. For
example, when businesses focus on being
sustainable, they often end up having an advantage
that lasts a long time. And when competition and
innovation work together, new and smart strategies
can help a business get ahead of others.
1) Sustainability: This factor reflects an
organization's ability to conduct business
practices that not only yield financial benefits but
also take into account long-term social and
environmental impacts. Sustainability becomes a
determinant factor because businesses that can
integrate environmental and social aspects into
their operations have a greater opportunity to
sustain competitive advantage. This may
encompass the efficient use of resources, waste
reduction, and responding to consumer demands
that increasingly prioritize ethics and corporate
responsibility.
2) Competition: The competitive factor is a strong
driver in inspiring innovation and progress.
Healthy competition compels organizations to
continuously strive to enhance their products,
services, and business processes to meet
customer needs and preferences. This
competitive framework also motivates
organizations to maintain quality, efficiency, and
competitiveness against other rivals in the
market.
3) Sustainable Development: This factor refers to
an organization's ability to develop a business
model that generates not only economic growth
but also considers long-term social and
environmental impacts. Organizations that can
integrate sustainable development into their
business strategies can build a strong reputation,
attract environmentally-conscious business
partners and investors, and maintain harmonious
relationships with stakeholders.
4) Innovation: Innovation refers to the creation and
application of new solutions that add value. The
innovation factor is important because
organizations that dare to change and improve
their operations, create innovative products and
services, and respond quickly to market changes
will have a greater opportunity to achieve and
sustain competitive advantage. Innovation can
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also help organizations differentiate themselves
from competitors, expand market share, and
create new opportunities.
5) Competitive Advantage: This factor
encompasses the advantage that sets an
organization apart from its competitors.
Competitive advantage arises when an
organization can deliver added value to
customers or possesses assets, resources, or
capabilities that are difficult for competitors to
replicate. This factor is the culmination of the
sequence, as sustainability, competition,
sustainable development, and innovation can all
contribute to achieving sustainable competitive
advantage.
By putting together all this information, it
becomes really clear how important these factors
are. It also shows that to have a strong Sustainable
Competitive Advantage, businesses need to look at
the bigger picture and have a well-rounded
approach. This research goes beyond just looking at
things – it helps us understand the complicated ways
that make businesses successful in today's always-
changing market.
Further exploration of these variables in the
future is warranted. The visualizations presented in
the aforementioned figures offer researchers an
opportunity to identify potential topics for new
contributions within the field of Sustainable
Competitive Advantage. The determinants of
Sustainable Competitive Advantage obtained from
the analysis results are depicted in Figure 14, which
include sustainability, sustainable development,
competition, innovation, and competitive advantage.
These determinants provide valuable insights into
the factors that play a significant role in achieving
Sustainable Competitive Advantage.
4 Conclusion
The analysis of the designed inclusion and exclusion
criteria yields valuable information, including the
following:
1) Bibliometrics is a highly useful tool in
systematic literature review research, effectively
combining the utilization of the Scopus
electronic database within the field of
Sustainable Competitive Advantage.
2) Research on sustainable competitive advantage
has been conducted in various countries,
encompassing both developed and developing
nations. China stands out as the leading
contributor with a total of 125 articles on
sustainable competitive advantage.
3) Research on sustainable competitive advantage
has extended beyond traditional fields such as
Business, Management, Accounting, Social
Science, and Environmental Science. It has also
ventured into other areas of study such as
Engineering, Computer Science, Economics,
Agriculture, Mathematics, and more.
4) Thematic evolution reveals that from 2020 to
2023, there are five prevalent themes:
competitiveness, sustainable development,
competition, sustainability, and ecology. The
bibliometrix library in RStudio and VOSviewer
software successfully conducted bibliometric
analysis and visualized quantitative data
extracted from Scopus. Consequently, several
determinant factors of Sustainable Competitive
Advantage were identified, including
sustainability, sustainable development,
competition, innovation, and competitive
advantage.
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Contribution of Individual Authors to the
Creation of a Scientific Article (Ghostwriting
Policy):
The author contributed in the present research, at all
stages from the formulation of the problem to the
final findings and solution.
Sources of Funding for Research Presented in a
Scientific Article or Scientific Article Itself:
No funding was received for conducting this study.
Conflict of Interest
The author has no conflicts of interest to declare.
Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0
(Attribution 4.0 International, CC BY 4.0)
This article is published under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en
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WSEAS TRANSACTIONS on COMPUTER RESEARCH
DOI: 10.37394/232018.2024.12.11
Abdul Satar
E-ISSN: 2415-1521
122
Volume 12, 2024