Competitiveness: Historical Overview, Concepts and Recent Approaches

Abstract

This paper aims to contribute to the clarification of the meaning of the term competitiveness. For this purpose, a historical overview is made in order to establish when it was first used and to determine the changes it experienced. Then, an account is rendered of the way this term has been conceived, understood or defined by some economists and organizations over time. Finally, a summary of the most important approaches to competitiveness is presented.