Konkurencyjność gospodarcza krajów. Propozycja alternatywnego pomiaru w kontekście dyskusji o konkurencyjności polskiej gospodarki

This article looks at the problem of measuring economic competitiveness of countries. It begins with describing various definitions of this phenomenon which are sometimes quite vague and close to tautology. The indicators of competitiveness which are most commonly used lack theoretical background, while the results depend on arbitrary choice of variables used for their construction. The author makes a proposal of an alternative way of measuring the competitiveness which is simple and well rooted in the theory. However, given the complexity of the problem, the proposed measurement does not solve all the problems. Its results allow for making the assessment of the development model of Poland and, in particular, formulating a hypothesis that Poland is underperforming in the field of the competitiveness given its level of economic and institutional development.