Industrial structure and innovation - evidence from European regions

Whether the composition of industrial activity influences innovation is the key question of this paper. The analysis is based on a model that integrates different kinds of diversity measures aiming at capturing Jacobs externalities, a production specialisation measure aiming at capturing Marshall-Arrow-Romer (MAR) externalities and regions as well as sector specific variables. Tested with an extended sample of 153 European regions and 16 manufacturing sectors, the estimates suggest that both kinds of externalities significantly influence innovation, although the influence of Jacobs externalities is more important in the context of high density regions as well as for high tech sectors.JEL Classification: R00, O18, O31Lydia Greunz: The author wishes to thank Henri Capron and two anonymous referees for their useful comments and suggestions. An earlier version of this paper was presented at Eindhoven Centre for Innovation Studies, January 2004, Eindhoven, The Netherlands.