Measuring the Socioeconomic Development of Selected Balkan Countries and Hungary: A Comparative Analysis for Sustainable Growth
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
The review of the paper, titled “Measuring the Socioeconomic Development of Selected Balkan Countries and Hungary: A Comparative Analysis on Sustainable Growth”:
- The introductory section is too wordy. It should be significantly shortened. The research gap could be more directly stated. Similarly, the contribution of the paper in the introduction. In other words, the author(s) should follow the IMRaD structure. Same applies to the remainder of the paper, which is lacking.
- I don’t understand why Poland is not taken into account as it is V4 countries. Some explanatory notes on the issue are needed.
- The is no information on the choice of variables: from the theoretical and statistical side.
- The literature review does not precede the formulation of the hypotheses. Thus, they are somewhere between parts of the paper, without proper reasoning.
- The discussion of the findings also lacks, whereas policy recommendations could be more straightforward.
The biggest concern is the quality of the research presented in the paper. The IF journal requires more sophisticated analysis (like econometric modelling).
Author Response
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Reviewer 2 Report
it is not specified how the 2 hypotheses were established
it is not clear what the alternative comparative method, mentioned in the abstract, consists of
it is not specified what was the selection criterion of the economic development indicators, considered in this article
the results of the paper and the contribution of the authors are not clearly mentioned in the conclusions
Author Response
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Reviewer 3 Report
Dear authors,
I congratulate for your work. Methods, case studies, results, discussion, and conclusions are the better parts of the paper and I won't suggest any changes, just check the English fluency. However, I found a lack in the Introduction. The theoretical framework and literature review are insufficient, so I would like to make few suggestions, mainly to improve the paper quality:
- There are no references between lines 45 and 49;
- I suggest to extract the theoretical framework from the introduction and to include the literature review in the theoretical framework. The paper lacks of a strong research question and a theoretical framework-literature review.
In this sense, from lines 156 to 168, please add references. I would suggest the authors give a theoretical overview of socioeconomic development and sustainable development in the Balkans in comparison with the rest of Europe, maybe some examples from Southern Europe (Italy, Portugal and/or Spain?). I recommend to extend the already existing (even if not well developed) theoretical framework-literature review with the following additions. I highly suggest to give an overview on how globalisation has affect the socioeconomic and urban environments of both Western and Eastern European countries (take as some basic references the followings, but you are surely free to extend it including some more references of Selected Balkan Countries):
(2017). The Icon Project. Architecture, Cities, and Capitalist Globalization. New York: Oxford University Press
(2018). Handbook of gentrification studies. Cheltenham-Northampton: Edward Elgar
(2019). Capital City: Gentrification and the Real Estate State. London: Verso
(2019). From “Ribera Plan” to “Diagonal Mar”, passing through 1992 “Vila Olímpica”. How urban renewal took place as urban regeneration in Poblenou district (Barcelona). Land Use Policy, 89, 104226. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2019.104226
(2020). Alpha City. How the Super-Rich Captured London. London, UK: Verso
(2020). Changing the urban design of cities for health: The superblock model. Environment International, 134: 105132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2019.105132
These references will also help you to focus on the three following aspects:
- Free market that enables the free competition of products and services which may thus be integral part of the global competition. Here see (2017). Global Cities and Urban Theory. Sage, London, UK
- Privatization of state-owned assets. Here see (2018). Italian military real estate assets re-use issues and opportunities in three capital cities. Land Use Policy, 78, doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.07.028 ;
- The transition crisis, which was the moderate the extremely high unemployment rate resulted from the massive recession, and suddenly increasing social inequalities leading to a widespread poverty of the population. Here see: (2016). Urban austerity. Impacts of the global financial crisis on cities in Europe. Berlin: Theater der Zeit.
Good luck with your research, I am looking forward to reading more.
Author Response
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Round 2
Reviewer 1 Report
2nd review of the paper titled “Measuring the Socioeconomic Development of Selected Balkan Countries and Hungary: A Comparative Analysis on Sustainable Growth”:
Although the paper has been significantly improved in terms of the layout and organization of the paper, it still does present a mediocre level of advancedness in terms of applied methods and the general quality of the research. Since “Sustainability” is IF journal it requires more sophisticated methods applied as well as more robust findings.
Author Response
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Reviewer 3 Report
Dear authors,
I congratulate you for the work done through the paper.
Nevertheless, I would strongly suggest using some of the references I recommend you in the first review to modify the phrase "Yet, if it is not further supported by efficient economic policy decisions, it might further boost the existing inequalities" in et, if it is not further supported by efficient economic, public, and urban policy decisions, it might further boost the existing inequalities". The relationship between the public, economy and the urban is essential. So, I highly recommend to add the following references at the end of this phrase:
(2019). Capital City: Gentrification and the Real Estate State. London: Verso
(2019). From “Ribera Plan” to “Diagonal Mar”, passing through 1992 “Vila Olímpica”. How urban renewal took place as urban regeneration in Poblenou district (Barcelona). Land Use Policy, 89, 104226. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.landusepol.2019.104226
(2020). Alpha City. How the Super-Rich Captured London. London, UK: Verso
Despite it is sure these references are not mandatory, they are recent outstanding references that analyse and put into the foreground how existing inequalities have been boosted due to specific economic, public and urban policies. I hope I made myself clear as I am pretty sure the reader will find them interesting to deepen the knowledge of these issues.
With my best wishes
Author Response
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