Economics and Business Letters

Editorial Note

Francisco J. Delgado — 2025-04-01

Editorial Note

Relatio sine qua non. Exploring interconnectedness in sustainable development

Valeria Costantini — 2025-04-01

This study sheds light on the interplay among environmental sustainability, technological innovation, and regional economic development within the European Union NUTS2 regions. By analysing data on various socioeconomic and environmental variables, we uncover different stages of transition coexisting within the European Union and within the same country, emphasizing the significance of green transition strategies that account for regional cohesion. Our findings underscore the need for policies that foster just and inclusive development, considering the multidimensional challenges of sustainability.

Institutional embeddedness and self-employment: does ethnicity matter?

Ana Cuadros — 2025-04-01

This paper seeks to provide new insights about the role played by institutional embeddedness in explaining self-employment (SE) in Europe. In addition to the variables typically used to capture formal institutions, we have also considered informal institutions such as the relevance of the shadow economy and the perception of corruption. We have also explored the mediating role played by ethnicity, assuming that the native and foreign-born populations have different attitudes toward SE. Moreover, unlike most previous studies, which tend to focus on a specific country, our analysis is conducted in a multi-country framework. Our results provide interesting insights regarding the heterogeneous impact of the institutional framework on SE decisions between these two population groups.

A bibliometric analysis of the vocational education and training (VET) literature

Maria Karantali — 2025-04-01

The literature on Vocational Education and Training (VET) spans over six decades. This review conducts a bibliometric analysis of 447 Scopus-indexed documents from 1965 to 2023. It is the first to analyze VET-related literature published in ABS-listed journals within the field of economics. Our findings highlight significant publication growth since 2014 and identify four primary research clusters: “vocational education and skill formation,” “vocational training and labor market outcomes,” “human capital and economic growth,” and “apprenticeship contracts and training costs.” Based on the current knowledge structure, we suggest directions for future research.

How dynamics of public debt and health expenditures affects response to health crises: Europe during COVID 19 pandemic

Mario Coccia — 2025-04-01

The main objective of this investigation is to analyze how high levels of public debt and deficit affect the preparedness of countries to face emergencies. In particular, this study examines the relationship between level of public debt and deficit as a share of GDP and health expenditures to face preparedness of European countries in the presence of COVID-19 pandemic crisis. Empirical evidence reveals that European countries with lower COVID-19 fatality rates had average lower government gross debt and deficit as a share of GDP both in 2009 and 2019 (period before the arrival of the pandemic) compared to countries with higher fatality rates. The findings show that policies for public finance of countries having high level of public debt and deficit reduce health expenditures weakening healthcare system and increasing vulnerability of socioeconomic system in the presence of crises, such as COVID-119 pandemic.

Review and challenges in the economic valuation of green spaces

Capucine Chapel — 2025-04-01

Green spaces provide a variety of ecosystem services to society and the environment. This paper provides an overview of the literature on the valuation of green spaces, focusing on their advantages and limitations. We conclude with a number of challenges ahead.