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In considering the role of ethics in Islamic economic and finance theory, it is necessary to understand the nature of ethics as human behavior derived from the foundation of Tawhid (oneness of Allah=unity of the divine law) through the transmission medium of the Sunnah (guidance of the Prophet Muhammad). These are together taken up as the basis of spiritual guidance in Islam – hudal il-mutaqqin (Qur'an, 2:2). This foundation of Islamic epistemology in concert with the medium of epistemological discourse among the learned participants establishes the idea of a System and its embedded circular causation relations in view of the ethics in the Qur'anic world-system. It is also necessary to understand how ethics, as so derived from the epistemological roots and processed through the ontological investigation of values and directions for rule setting pertaining to given issues at hand, establish the premise of the shari'ah along with its ijtihadi (foundational Islamic investigation for rule setting) extensions.

This paper considers a broader concept of economic integration in order to analyze the impact of integration on economic growth within the context of the knowledge-driven endogenous economic growth model. The equilibrium growth rate derived from the model implies that while increasing the flow of ideas from integration speeds up the long-run rate of growth, impact of trade liberalization is complicated and not decisive. The overall impact of economic integration on • economic growth depends on various aspects of the economy which are related to its R&D investment such as knowledge spillovers, and industrial and market structures. The results of this paper suggest that policy makers need to consider international economic policy, market structure and industrial policy all at once, with special emphasis on the effect affirms' R&D activities when making decisions on economic integration.

Why should entrepreneurship matter for economic growth, employment creation and international competitiveness? The entrepreneurship literature has traditionally suggested that entrepreneurship matters to individuals and firms, but rarely for economic growth.

Setting the field of economics as the study of value in exchange, Blaug (1968a, 1968b, p. 6) wrote:The problem that gave rise to economics in the first place, the “mystery” that fascinated Adam Smith as much as it does a modern economist, is that of market exchange: there is a sense of order in the economic universe, and this order is not imposed from above but is somehow the outcome of the exchange transactions between individuals, each seeking to maximize his own gain. The history of economic thought, therefore, is nothing but the history of our efforts to understand the workings of an economy based on market exchange.

This paper aims to address the mechanisms of, and barriers to, knowledge transfer between Australia and China in the tertiary sector.

Individual focused interviews are conducted with one Chinese and ten Australian senior academics engaged in supervisory roles at all levels of knowledge transfer. Content and sociolinguistics analysis is conducted on the questions: How is knowledge transferred between key academic/research staff? What is the potential for commercialization of research findings between Australia and China? What role does information and communication technology (ICT) play in knowledge transfer?

Knowledge transfer between Chinese and Australian universities consists of research partnerships, collective publications, and joint degree programs. One‐way transfer of knowledge from Australia to China, rather than the desired reciprocal transfer of knowledge, appears to be most common. Barriers to bi‐directional knowledge sharing include misunderstandings surround intellectual property and cultural differences, which undermine trust between China and Australia. The participants overwhelmingly hold optimistic views about the potential of commercialization of research findings between China and Australia and report that ICT enhances communications assisted in successful knowledge transfer. However, ICT is reported to be under‐utilized because of unequal access to hardware and broadband in China as well as blocking and censorship of communication by China.

This paper contributes to the discourse on international, intercultural and bi‐directional knowledge transfer in the tertiary sector and has implications for enhanced academic and research excellence between China and Australia. Moreover, insight into the mechanisms of successful knowledge transfer may be applicable to improve knowledge transfer between Australia and other countries.

Transgenic crops have been increasingly adopted, produced and commercialized throughout the world. Correspondingly, the management of intellectual property rights concerning transgenic crops has gained importance. In this context, it is necessary to understand the status quo of transgenic crop production, especially in developing countries. The purpose of this paper is to provide a general scenario of transgenic crops and their growth around the world, especially in Latin America.

A literature review was carried out to determine the status of intellectual property protection, production and commercialization of transgenic crops.

Opinions concerning the risks and benefits of adopting transgenics are markedly divided. Its presence in the agricultural sector has undoubtedly taken a firm hold in different parts of the world. Nevertheless, there are some areas of the international transgenics industry that need further and ongoing discussion and assessment, such as biosafety, intellectual property, regulation and legislation, among others. Additionally, in developing countries, and especially in the case of Latin America, other relevant issues to be addressed are associated with the conservation of local plant varieties and the preservation of cultural values, as well as the development of endogenous technology to solve local problems and the integration of farmers and the society at large and their interests into the discussion.

The most significant limitation of the present study was the lack of available data. Future studies using larger data sets will allow for more robust statistical analyses. Additionally, country-specific studies focused on the most important crops, those that each country grows intensively, are necessary for a better insight into the global dynamics of the sector; these studies must stress the intellectual property mechanisms used and address biosafety and regulatory issues, among other areas.

The present study represents a starting point for establishing schemes to facilitate the proper development and management of transgenic technology based on regional interests and the guiding principles of ethics and biosecurity.

The study of resource allocation in market venues is taken up in a comparative framework of neoclassical and various social contractarian theories. It is shown that economic theory does not have an explanation of substantive interactions among agents and variables as it does among society, economy and institutions, all of which social contractarian theory necessitates. Thus Rawls’s and Gauthier’s social contractarian theories are examined against neoclassicism and the classical theory of markets and resource allocation. Shortcomings with these theories are pointed out and a purely interactive theory of social contractarianism is propounded. Markets and resource allocation are once again studied in this framework.

This paper aims to assess the main sources, key propositions and empirical methods available to researchers taking a “subjectivist” perspective on the creation of opportunities by entrepreneurs.

Subjectivist research is defined behaviourally: it emphasises the internal, mental processes and subjective meanings incorporated in entrepreneurial acts. The alertness literature is accorded special attention; it originally possessed a strong subjectivist orientation and focused on opportunity recognition.

A subjectivist approach has distinct advantages: it requires researchers to observe, analyse and explain entrepreneurial creativity with reference to entrepreneurs' internal, personal interpretations of their environment. Subjectivist approaches ask: how do entrepreneurs create profit opportunities? Subjectivists extend the concept of entrepreneurial alertness to include analysis of knowledge construction processes.

Fruitful theoretical and applied subjectivist research de‐emphasises entrepreneurs' exploitation of existing opportunities; knowledge construction fundamental to the genesis of creative behaviour becomes central.

There are several empirically oriented organising frameworks available in the literature consistent with a subjectivist orientation to entrepreneurial creativity.

This is the first attempt to assess and synthesise modern subjectivist work on the creative dimension of entrepreneurial behaviour. It identifies complementary conceptual developments on the interface between economics and psychology. Some promising empirical methods are suggested.

Since the mid‐1980s focus has shifted from stabilization to economic growth as a national goal. A large number of studies have been undertaken to explain economic growth. It is intended to show that the current debate between those who claim only institutions matter to economic growth and others who claim that only governance matters is totally unproductive.

Econometric methods are used to evaluate the recent empirical studies on linking the quality of institutions or governance to economic growth.

It is shown that the empirical model specification as well as the estimation methods used by important studies are inappropriate.

Future research needs to incorporate not only the institutions, and governance but also the desire to save, invest and innovate to explain economic growth.

The existing theories of economic growth do not fully capture the complex process of economic growth implying that these theories should not be used as a guide to the screening of developmental aid to the developing countries.

The researchers need to change direction away from data mining and towards developing a better understanding of the growth process. Policy makers should be careful in crafting their policies.

As families engage in entrepreneurship, particularly in developing economies, women's engagement in such activities is subject to the traditional cultures, norms and values of the communities to which they belong. This paper aims to investigate how the socio-cultural context influences women's entrepreneurship as women engage in “family entrepreneuring”.

The study draws on an inductive qualitative approach to explore how multiple cultural, social and economic contexts encourage women's entrepreneurship and, thus, position them at the centre of family entrepreneuring within this community. Using snowballing techniques, we analyse narratives from 51 women entrepreneurs, generated through semi-structured interviews, to reveal key insights into the practice of family entrepreneuring.

The findings reveal the complex socio-cultural context within the “Adja” community, where polygamy, a traditional and cultural practice, enables the transfer of culturally and socially embedded informal knowledge. The study explains how women's entrepreneuring activities are supported by informal in-family apprenticeships, resulting in family members learning specific skills while also experiencing the feeling of belonging to the family. Showcasing the heterogeneity of contexts, particularly those found in Africa, this study challenges the normative view within the Global North and the dominance of the “heroic male” in entrepreneurship by showcasing how women (especially matriarchs) are significant actors in training other women, co-wives, daughters and relatives in family entrepreneuring.

Thus, this study contributes to the extant literature on family entrepreneuring by revealing an unusual case of women from polygamous families becoming the focal actors in family entrepreneuring activity and challenging the culturally ascribed gender roles to evolve into the breadwinners in their households, as well as focusing on how this process is driven by endogenous knowledge exchange.