Economics of R&D and innovation

THE IMPORTANCE OF TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF EXPORT PERFORMANCE: THE CASE OF TURKISH MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY: İHRACAT PERFORMANSI AÇISINDAN TEKNOLOJİK YENİLİĞİN ÖNEMİ: TÜRKİYE İMALAT SANAYİ ÖRNEĞİ

by Mustafa Demir

Keywords: Export; R&D Expenditure; Technological Innovation; Turkey

Technological innovations are important with regard to increasing export performance. However, the results that had... more Technological innovations are important with regard to increasing export performance. However, the results that had been reached in the empirical literature investigating the effects of R&D expenses which is accepted as input of technological innovation on the export performance are not compatible with each other. The purpose of this study is to contribute to the discussion in the literature. Between years 1995–2005, a panel data analysis was used to test the relationship between Turkish manufacturing industries’ exports, and the R&D expenses. It was found that the effect of the R&D expenses on export performance was substantially lagged.

R&D drivers in Young Innovative Companies

by gabriele pellegrino

This paper examines the determinants of young innovative companies’ (YICs) R&D activities taking into account the... more This paper examines the determinants of young innovative companies’ (YICs) R&D activities taking into account the autoregressive nature of innovation.
Using a large longitudinal dataset comprising Spanish manufacturing firms over the period 1990-2008, we find that previous R&D experience is a fundamental determinant for mature and young firms, albeit to a smaller extent in the case of the YICs, suggesting that their innovation behaviour is less persistent and more erratic.
Moreover, our results suggest that firm and market characteristics play a distinct role in boosting the innovation activity of firms of different age. In particular, while market concentration and the degree of product diversification are found to be important in fostering R&D activities in the sub-sample of mature firms only, YICs’ spending on R&D appears to be more sensitive to demand-pull variables, suggesting the presence of credit constraints.
These results have been obtained using a recently proposed dynamic type-2 tobit estimator, which accounts for individual effects and efficiently handles the initial conditions problem.

The Machine Tool Industry in Italy

by Fabio Campanini

Research centers in transition: patterns of convergence and diversity

by Laura Cruz-Castro

Laura Cruz-Castro, Luis Sanz-Menéndez;& Catalina Martínez (2010) “Research centers in transition: patterns of convergence and diversity”, The Journal of Technology Transfer 37 (1), pp. 18-42

Governments continue to play a central role in the way research is conducted and organized by defining new models for... more Governments continue to play a central role in the way research is conducted and organized by defining new models for research centers. How do existing research centers adapt to changes in their environment? Institutional theory suggests that organizations
pursue efficiency and legitimacy by conforming to isomorphic pressures in their organizational field, which will eventually lead to a reduction of diversity in organizational practices and strategies. Resource-dependence theory assumes a more active agency and
calls attention to the diverse strategic responses of organizations to institutional processes.
Based on funding microdata and qualitative information at center level, this study undertakes to analyze changes in two populations of Spanish research centers (government laboratories and technology centers) in a time of evolving policy paradigms, emergence of
new models for research centers, and increasing competition in the field of R&D. We find that a large share of the existing government laboratories and technology centers have progressively conformed to a funding strategy based on diversifying sources and increasing
competitive public funding, although both populations are still characterized by some degree of internal diversity regarding funding portfolios. Structural heterogeneity also remains as regards management practices such as research planning and agenda setting.

Laura Cruz Castro; Luis Sanz Menéndez (2007) “New legitimation models and the transformation of the research field”. International Studies of Management and Organization, vol. 37, n.1, 2007, p. 27-52,.

by Luis Sanz-Menendez

"Published in "International Studies of Management and Organization", [special issue on Organizing Science (edited by Joanne Duberley & Laurie Cohen)] vol. 37, n.1, 2007, p. 27-52,.

The public research sector is changing all over Europe. New semi-public research centers have emerged and now coexist... more The public research sector is changing all over Europe. New semi-public research centers have emerged and now coexist with the traditional public research centers in the same organizational field. It is argued that these changes are mostly policy driven and that the main mechanism is the emergence of new legitimation models of what research and research centers should be for, with a strong emphasis on excellence in science, technology transfer, and service to society. Governments have changed the way they distribute resources or create research structures according to these changing models. As in many other events of the history of science and technology policy, the boundary struggles and changes are underlying issues in this paper. This transformation in the institutional environments of the research centers has instigated changes in the structure of the organizational field of research, mainly reflecting the emergence of new types of organizations and their search for management flexibility and the diversification of funding sources.

Does the institutional environment foster R&D expenditures? An international analysis

by Felix Lopez-Iturriaga

Co-authored with E. López. Published in Globalización, Competitividad y Gobernabilidad.

We analyze the influence of investors’ legal protection and of ownership structure on corporate expenditures in... more We analyze the influence of investors’ legal protection and of ownership structure on corporate expenditures in R&D. We use information from 1,091 firms from 19 countries and find that a more protective legal framework is positively related to corporate investment in R&D. Once the institutional obstacles are removed, financial factors become more effective to promote R&D. Ownership concentration acts as a substitute of legal protection and has a positive impact on R&D in the countries with the worst institutional environment.

R&D in the national income and product accounts: A first look at its effect on GDP

by Barbara Fraumeni

Effets d'agglomération et politique industrielle en Chine

by Rigas Arvanitis

Co-authored with Zhao Wei

The Production of Scientific Output by Early-Career Researchers

by Martin Ryan

Manuscript. This is one of the chapters in my Ph.D. thesis.

This study investigates the production of scientific output by early-career researchers in the university setting. The... more This study investigates the production of scientific output by early-career researchers in the university setting. The expectations of these individuals - in relation to the commercialisation of their research - are also examined. To date, few studies have examined the individual-level determinants of publication and patent production. Most of the studies on academic scientists’ careers are based upon U.S. data; and not much is known about the individual-level determinants of academic scientists’ output in Europe. In addition, this is the first study to examine expectations related to research-commercialisation: that the author is aware of. The key results (based on a sample from the seven universities in Ireland) show that institutional affiliation, gender, interest in area of research and years of experience all play a role in the postdoctoral production function. In particular, institutional affiliation and gender are the most economically significant drivers of scientific output. Notably, males are twenty-one percent more likely to expect that they will commercialise their research.

Is Corporate R&D Investment In High-Tech Sectors More Effective?

by Raquel Ortega-Argilés

Ortega-Argilés, R.; M. Piva; L. Potters and M. Vivarelli (2010) Is corporate R&D investment in high-tech sectors more effective? Some guidelines for European Research Policy, Contemporary Economic Policy, 28(3), July, 353-365.

This paper discusses the link between R&D and productivity across the European industrial and service sectors. The... more This paper discusses the link between R&D and productivity across the European industrial and service sectors. The empirical analysis is based on both the European sectoral OECD data over the period 1987-2002 and on a unique micro longitudinal database consisting of 532 top European R&D investors over the six-year period 2000-2005. The main conclusions are as follows. First, the R&D stock has a significant positive impact on labour productivity; this general result is largely consistent with previous literature in terms of the sign, the significance and the magnitude of the estimated coefficients. More interestingly – both at sectoral and firm levels - the R&D coefficient increases monotonically (both in significance and magnitude) when we move from the low-tech to the medium and high-tech sectors. This outcome means that corporate R&D investment is more effective in the high-tech sectors and this may need to be taken into account when designing policy instruments (subsidies, fiscal incentives, etc.) in support of private R&D. However, R&D investment is not the sole source of productivity gains; technological change embodied in gross investment is of comparable importance on aggregate and it is the main determinant of the productivity increase in the low-tech sectors. Hence, an economic policy aiming to increase productivity in the low-tech sectors should support the overall capital formation.

Does Cluster Policy Trigger R&D Activity? Evidence from German Biotech Contests

by Roberto Patuelli

Co-authored with D. Engel, T. Mitze and J. Reinkowski, forthcoming in 'European Planning Studies'. ISI impact factor (2010): 0.645

This paper evaluates the R&D enhancing effects of two large public grant schemes for the German biotechnology... more This paper evaluates the R&D enhancing effects of two large public grant schemes for the German biotechnology industry (BioRegio, BioProfile). Both grant schemes are organized as contents of competition and aim at fostering the performance of innovative firms organized in clusters. We apply Difference-in-Difference estimation techniques in a generalized linear model framework, which allows us to control for different initial regional conditions in R&D activity of the biotech sector. Our econometric findings support the view that winners generally outperform non-winning participants during the treatment period, thus indicating that exclusive funding as well as the stimulating effect of being a “winner” seems to work in the short-term. Apart from this direct effect, no beneficial indirect effect stemming from the mobilization of non-winning participants in the contests could be detected. Finally, first attempts in estimating the long-term effect of public R&D grants on winner regions in the post-treatment period show mixed results.