A Course of Innovations in Wood Processing Industry within the Forestry-Wood Chain in Slovakia: A Q Methodology Study to Identify Future Orientation in the Sector

Abstract

Abstract:As innovations are the basic premise of commercial success in the market the main objective of this paper is to determine the main course of innovations in wood-processing industry within the forestry-wood chain in Slovakia from the viewpoint of representatives of wood processing companies. Using a Q-methodology approach the emphasis is also put on identification of differences between the opinions of small individual entrepreneurs and representatives of capital companies. Based on the results of structured interview with representatives of 33 wood processing companies the main findings suggest that future innovation activities in the sector will be related to the technology innovations mainly in processing of coniferous timber. However, the extent of such innovations is perceived differently depending on the company size and ownership category. While small individual entrepreneurs expect only slight innovation changes in the industry aimed at the meeting of required standards, managers of capital companies tend to foresee the future vision in restructuralisation of wood-processing industry.

Changes in Carbon Balance of Harvested Wood Products Resulting from Different Wood Utilization Scenarios

“…Owing to the present structure and specialisation of the industry, a significant part of coniferous logs production is being exported and non-coniferous pulpwood is being imported. Without the additional production and innovation investments, and government support, the wood processing industry in Slovakia will not be able to utilise the available domestic wood potential and produce value added products and eliminate the export of roundwood and intermediate products [44].…”

Stakeholders’ Perceptions of the Innovation Trends in the Slovak Forestry and Forest-Based Sectors

“…The paper is methodically based on using Q-method, which is widely used in various research fields such as medicine (Cirigliano, 2013;Salloch et al, 2018) policy (Andersen et al, 2018) and many other sectors (Andersen et al, 2018;Dean, 2019). Q-method has also been utilised in forestry and forest-based sectors research (Steelman & Maguire, 1999;Dasgupta, 2005;Loučanová et al, 2017;Walder & Kantelhardt, 2018). Živojinović and Wolfslehner (2015) used Q-method interviews to evaluate the perceptions of urban forestry stakeholders towards climate change adaptation in the city of Belgrade in Serbia.…”

“…As stated by Kállay (2007), Q-methodology is combining qualitative and quantitative approaches to research. As it is primary an exploratory technique it is effective for obtaining data from small samples and allowing comparison of different points of view (Loučanová et al, 2017). It cannot prove hypotheses; however, it is able to generate some consistency to research questions with potentially contested answers (Bucar et al, 2003).…”

“…The use of Q-methodology enables respondents to express their viewpoints with minimal researcher interference. In the application of Q-methodology, the domain is subjectivity and research is performed on small samples (Loučanová et al, 2017). Q-methodology is less concerned with the ability to generalize the findings from the analysis, and it uses smaller, well-selected samples to analyse variability within cases.…”

“…Research of innovations in the Slovak forestry and forest-based sectors has focused on innovative behavior and implementation of innovations within the forest enterprises (Sarvašová & Kovalčík, 2010), forest contractors, and wood processing enterprises (Loučanová et al, 2017). Research also addressed the barriers to implementation of innovations.…”