The Case for Competitive Areas of Integration: A Literature Review
The Case for Competitive Areas of Integration: A Literature Review

Summary/Abstract: The work attempts to substantiate the conjecture of an optimum competitive area, tentatively referred to as a certain pattern of spatially-defined areas conducive to competitive development for industries or firms in such a way that benefits from competition are maximized. This paper does not provide a theoretical exposition of the existence of an optimum competitive area, but the framework against which this sort of economic phenomenon may be investigated. It attempts to expound by means of an overview of the existing theoretical literature if one could plausibly consider it. There are arguments that speak for the meaningfulness of the quest for the geographical scale at which the sources of competitive advantages are optimally exploited. There are however reasons to believe that no strict spatial definitions of competitive economic areas exist; instead, one should tackle with spaces of variable geometry depending on factors like economic similarities, geography, cultural traditions or social habits. Even if this sort of definitions is deemed to remain rather vague, this material suggests that an economic definition is not only realistically substantiated by several characteristics, but also pragmatically required because of its tangible policy implications for development.

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