R&D, Human Capital and International Technology Spillovers: A Cross-country Analysis

This paper is based on recent developments in the theory of innovation-driven growth that emphasize both the importance of R&D efforts — domestic as well as foreign — for explaining national productivity, and the complementarity between R&D and human capital investments. Estimates of specifications, in growth terms and in level terms, on a cross-section of OECD countries from the early 1960s to the early 1990s lend strong support to this thesis. The data show a significant influence of both domestic and foreign R&D. Moreover, there is clearly a net positive impact of human capital. The level and growth rate of human capital are shown to affect productivity growth and there is evidence of interaction with the catch-up process.
JEL classification: O 33; O 47     

R&D Spillovers and Location Choice under Cournot Rivalry

A model of location choice by Cournot oligopolists is presented, under the assumption that R&D spillovers depend on the distance between firms. It is shown that a variety of patterns emerge. Agglomeration is optimal under certain assumptions. Geographical dispersion in a two-dimensional plane is another possible outcome.     

R&D and Productivity in German Manufacturing Firms

This papcr uses a new firm panel data set to explore the relationship between R&D and productivity in German manufacturing firms for the period from 1979 to 1989. The results confirm the view that K&D is an important determinant of productivity growth. In the cross-section, the elasticity of sales with respect to R&D capital is on the order of 14 per cent. Using fixed-effects estimators yields R&D elasticities of about 8 per cent. Assuming different depreciation rates for R&D capital has virtually no effect on these results. Differencing estimates improve considerably when growth rates are computed over longer time periods, suggesting that the divergence between time-series and cross-sectional estimates is driven by random measurement errors. The paper also considers differences between high technology and other firms. Cross-section and panel elasticity estimates of the R&D effect diverge considerably for the two groups, while the corresponding rate of return estimators display far less variation. There is some evidence that the R&D elasticity increased during the early 1980s, and that it fell sharply back to its 1979 value during the period from 1985 to 1989.     

International R&D spillovers and institutions

The empirical analysis in “International R&D Spillovers” [Coe, D., Helpman, E., 1995. International R&D Spillovers. European Economic Review, 39, 859-887] is first revisited on an expanded data set that we have constructed for the purpose of this study. The new estimates confirm the key results reported in Coe and Helpman about the impact of domestic and foreign R&D capital stocks on TFP. In addition, we show that domestic and foreign R&D capital stocks have measurable impacts on TFP even after controlling for the impact of human capital. Furthermore, we extend the analysis to include institutional variables. Our results suggest that institutional differences are important determinants of TFP and that they impact the degree of R&D spillovers. Countries where the ease of doing business and the quality of tertiary education systems are relatively high tend to benefit more from their own R&D efforts, from international R&D spillovers, and from human capital formation. Strong patent protection is associated with higher levels of total factor productivity, higher returns to domestic R&D, and larger international R&D spillovers. Finally, countries whose legal systems are based on French and, to a lesser extent, Scandinavian law benefit less from their own and foreign R&D capital than countries whose legal origins are based on English or German law.     

Knowledge specialization and R&D collaboration

This paper contributes to the knowledge-based explanation of R&D networks. It argues that knowledge overlap and novelty are complementary inputs of a R&D alliance, in forms that depend upon the exploration breadth and depth of the R&D activity. The paper investigates how the hypothesis of specialization of the knowledge endowments can recover a number of characteristic empirical properties of a pattern of R&D collaboration in the economy. Implications for network evolution are discussed.     

Subsidizing Technological Innovations in the Presence of R&D Spillovers

Abstract. We analyze a situation where a principal wants to induce two firms to produce an output, for example electricity from renewable energy sources. Firms can undertake non-contractible investments to reduce production cost of the output. Part of these investments spills over and also reduces production cost of the other firm. Comparing a general price subsidy and an innovation tournament, we find that the principal's expected cost of implementing a given expected output is always higher under the tournament, even though this scheme may lead to more innovation.     

International R&D Spillovers,Absorptive Capacity and Relative Backwardness: A Panel Smooth Transition Regression Model

We investigate how a country's absorptive capacity and relative backwardness affect the impact of international R&D spillovers on domestic Total Factor Productivity (TFP). To account for nonlinearities, we adopt a Panel Smooth Transition Regression approach, where a country's TFP elasticity to the foreign R&D stock is allowed to change smoothly across various identified extreme values, and the change is related to observable transition variables: human capital (capturing the country's absorptive capacity) and relative backwardness. The results suggest that absorptive capacity is positively associated with international R&D spillovers. In contrast with previous results, relative backwardness is instead found to have a negative and significant impact on international knowledge spillovers.     

Productivity and R&D sources: evidence for Catalan firms

This paper draws on a sample of innovative Catalan firms to identify how two main sources of innovation – internal R&D and external R&D acquisition – affect productivity in the manufacturing and service industries. The sample comprises 1612 innovative firms from the fourth European Community Innovation Survey (CIS-4) during the period 2002–2004. We compare empirical results when applying the usual OLS and quantile regression techniques controlling with a non-parametric sample selection. Our results indicate the different patterns that are attributable to the two sources of innovation as we move up from lower to higher conditional quantiles. First, the marginal effect of internal R&D on productivity decreased as we moved up to higher productivity levels. Second, the marginal effect of external R&D acquisition increased as we moved up to higher productivity levels. Finally, empirical results show significant complementarities between internal and external R&D, which are higher for knowledge-intensive service sectors.     

开放经济下知识资本与全要素生产率——国际经验与中国启示

本文就知识资本对全要素生产率的影响效应进行比较分析,文中把国内知识资本分为研发资本、人力资本、创新设施资本和技术资本以及国外知识资本分为进口和FDI溢出知识资本,以130个经济体1981—2010年间的面板数据,依据系统聚类法将130个经济体划分为创新领导型、创新追赶型和创新缓慢型三类俱乐部样本,运用宏观知识生产函数模型对知识资本与全要素生产率的影响效应进行了实证检验。结果显示:国内知识资本和国外知识资本的溢出都是影响全要素生产率提升的重要因素,但是不同知识资本要素对不同创新经济体全要素生产率的影响存在明显差异:研发资本、技术资本和FDI渠道对创新领导俱乐部的促进作用大于创新追赶和创新缓慢俱乐部;人力资本和进口渠道对创新追赶俱乐部的促进作用大于创新领导和创新缓慢俱乐部;创新设施资本和技术差距对创新缓慢俱乐部的促进作用大于创新领导和创新追赶俱乐部。我国正处在创新追赶型国家向创新领导型国家转变的重要阶段,创新政策的重点应促进国内外各创新资源的有效配置,增强知识资本投入产出能力,加快提高全要素生产率。     

Productivity and R&D: an econometric evidence from Spanish firm-level data

This article analyses the relationship between productivity growth and R&D investments of Spanish manufacturing firms during the 1990s. The theoretical model is a version of the Cobb–Douglas production function in its growth rate form. The purpose is to estimate the rate of return to R&D expenditures. The econometric specification is a distributed lag model. The estimation applies the generalized method of moments method. The main empirical finding is that a positive and significant role is played by R&D expenditures on productivity growth. The rate of return to R&D expenditures is 26.598%.     

中国全要素生产率的估算:1979—2004

本文在分析比较了全要素生产率四种估算方法的基础上,估算出我国1979—2004年间的全要素生产率增长率,并对我国全要素生产率增长和经济增长源泉做了简要分析。分析表明(1)1993年以前,我国的全要素生产率增长率总体呈现出涨跌互现的波动情形且波动较为剧烈频繁,1993年以来,则呈现出逐年下降趋势,直到2000年才得以缓解,此后全要素生产率增长率总体呈现出逐年攀升势头;(2)1979—2004年间我国全要素生产率增长率及其对经济增长的贡献率较低,表明我国经济增长主要依赖于要素投入增长,是一种较为典型的投入型增长方式;(3)我国全要素生产率增长率较低的原因在于技术进步率偏低、生产能力没有得到充分利用、技术效率低下和资源配置不尽合理。     

Productivity in China's high technology industry: Regional heterogeneity and R&D

This paper analyzes the impact of Research and Development (R&D) on the productivity of China's high technology industry. In order to capture important differences in the effect of R&D on output that arise from geographic and socioeconomic differences across three major regions in China, we use a novel semiparametric approach that allows us to model heterogeneities across provinces and time. Using a unique provincial level panel dataset spanning the period 2000–2007, we find that the impact of R&D on output varies substantially in terms of magnitude and significance across different regions. Results show that the eastern region benefits the most from R&D investments, however it benefits the least from technical progress, while the western region benefits the least from R&D investments, but enjoys the highest benefits from technical progress. The central region benefits from R&D investments more than the western region and benefits from technical progress more than the eastern region. Our results suggest that R&D investments would significantly increase output in both the eastern and central regions, however technical progress in the central region may further compound the effects of R&D on output within the region.     

Total Factor Productivity and Efficiency of Australian Airports

By using a Malmquist total factor productivity index and data envelopment analysis it is possible to investigate the efficiency and productivity of Australian airports during the 1990s. The results from this analysis indicate that these airports recorded strong growth in technological change and total factor productivity, but did not fare all that well in terms of growth in technical and scale efficiency during the 1990s. At the international level it appears that Australia's largest airports fare reasonably well in comparison to airports overseas, although they still possess the potential to realise further gains.     

人力资本与区域全要素生产率分析

本文采用Malmquist指数分析了我国30个省级行政区1996—2003年的全要素生产率(TFP)增长,并将其分解为技术进步指数和效率变化指数。为了减少计算偏差,我们在使用承认无效率项存在的生产前沿技术的同时,引入了人力资本要素。本文的分析结果表明我国的人力资本水平增长迅速,30个省区的经济增长效率差距逐年扩大。同时我们发现在引入人力资本要素后,1996—2003年区域全要素生产率的增长得益于技术进步;如果不考虑人力资本存量,则低估了同期的效率提高程度,而高估了期间的技术进步指数。     

Capital–Labor Ratios and Total Factor Productivity in the Balassa–Samuelson Model

The paper investigates the relationship between sectoral capital–labor ratios and total factor productivity (TFP) in the context of the Balassa–Samuelson model. It is shown that, under certain assumptions, the model implies that both traded- and nontraded-goods sectors' capital–labor ratios should be cointegrated with the traded -goods sector's TFP. Evidence from an intersectoral database for 14 OECD countries broadly supports this implication of the model. In addition to shedding light on the evolution of sectoral capital–labor ratios, the results also alleviate concerns regarding the reliability of capital stock data.     

农业全要素生产率与农业优先发展

提高农业全要素生产率是补齐农业现代化"短板"、实现农业优先发展的根本出路.由农村劳动力质量的提升和利益驱动下农民自觉的技术购买和使用所带来的技术进步,是农业全要素生产率提高的重要源泉,但技术无效率的扩大却减缓了全要素生产率的增速,这主要是由农业生产资源配置效率降低引起的.其中,农村劳动力流动的单向性是导致我国农业生产资源配置恶化的关键因素.因此,要提高农业全要素生产率实现农业优先发展必须从"人的因素"开始着力,这需要以教育变革为抓手提高农业人力资本水平,以农产品价格体制改革为先导、以土地制度创新为依托扩大农民收益空间,进而激发农业发展的内生动力.     

中国保险业全要素生产率研究

基于非参数的Malmquist指数方法,本文对我国1999～2006年间保险业的全要素生产率变化状况进行了动态分析,针对众多的研究方法都存在决策单元规模报酬不变假定,以及决策单元向生产前沿面逼近路径只能选择径向,即仅考虑投入或产出变化情况的缺陷,本文提出修正的Malmquist指数模型.实证发现,中国保险业全要素生产率在1999～2006年问有所提高,其中"追赶效应"较为明显而"增长效应"还未完全显现,这说明保险机构更加注重提高自身技术效率水平而非创新能力提高生产的有效性,依然没有处理好效率进步与技术进步的关系,保险机构需要进一步提升技术创新的能力.     

经济发展中的全要素生产率悖论

因为发展中国家具有引进技术的后发优势,而技术设备的引进表现在资本存量的增加上,而不是表现在研发的增加上,所以当发展中国家采用传统的全要素生产率核算公式时会低估发展中国家的TFP增长率,这就是经济发展中的TFP悖论。本文发展了一个正式模型来调和这一悖论,模型分析表明,传统方法的低估会随着发展中国家用于引进技术的资本量的增加而增大,随着发展中国家对引进技术的消化吸收能力的增加而增大。     

环境约束下的制造业生产率增长分析

本文引入Malmquist-Luenberger生产率指数,对比分析环境约束和无约束情形下的2001-2008年中国制造业28个细分行业生产率增长状况。进一步的,本文分别将行业全要素生产率指数、技术进步指数及技术效率指数作为生产率增长指标,选取资本深化、行业规模、科技投入、环境污染和行业属性作为解释变量,利用面板数据回归模型分析环境约束下生产率增长影响因素。研究发现,忽略环境约束会低估制造业技术效率水平及其指数,但会高估技术进步指数和全要素生产率指数;分析结果表明影响因素对生产率增长均有显著影响。