Book excerpt: The study of competition and competitiveness has recently seen a great deal of expansion and development. This timely survey reviews the most important developments in policy and practice. It illustrates the complexity of competitive behaviour in the real world and provides a framework for understanding the different notions of competition. Special attention is given to key areas including: - competition as a process versus competition as a state of affairs - the behaviour of firms and organization of competition - new forms of competition and competition policies The Process of Competition will be essential reading for researchers, practitioners and policymakers concerned with competition policy, industrial economics and strategic management.