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What is the causal effect of R&D on patenting activity in a “professor’s privilege” country? Evidence from Sweden

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  • Olof Ejermo

    (Lund University)

  • John Källström

    (Lund University)

Abstract

We investigate the responsiveness of academic patenting to research and development (R&D) at the subject level at Swedish universities in panel data regressions. The general responsiveness to R&D is found to be higher than corresponding estimates in US studies, especially when we adopt instrumental variable techniques that address endogeneity in the R&D-to-patent relationship studied. We also find that this responsiveness is not associated with a lower quality of patents measured in terms of citations. A higher responsiveness from R&D to patenting is found in the fields of chemical engineering, chemistry (science), electrical engineering, electronics, and photonics, information technology, medicine, and microbiology than in other patenting fields. Our main result, that academia in Sweden contributes well to inventive activity, supports the view that the professor’s privilege—that university researchers themselves have ownership to their inventions—may be a contributing factor.

Suggested Citation

  • Olof Ejermo & John Källström, 2016. "What is the causal effect of R&D on patenting activity in a “professor’s privilege” country? Evidence from Sweden," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 677-694, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:sbusec:v:47:y:2016:i:3:d:10.1007_s11187-016-9752-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s11187-016-9752-7
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    Cited by:

    1. Ejermo, Olof & Toivanen, Hannes, 2018. "University invention and the abolishment of the professor's privilege in Finland," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(4), pages 814-825.
    2. Maribel Guerrero & David Urbano & Alain Fayolle & Magnus Klofsten & Sarfraz Mian, 2016. "Entrepreneurial universities: emerging models in the new social and economic landscape," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 551-563, October.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Academia; Knowledge production functions; Patenting; Professor’s privilege; Research and development; Sweden;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C25 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Discrete Regression and Qualitative Choice Models; Discrete Regressors; Proportions; Probabilities
    • C26 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Instrumental Variables (IV) Estimation
    • I23 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Higher Education; Research Institutions
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
    • O32 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Management of Technological Innovation and R&D
    • O34 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Intellectual Property and Intellectual Capital
    • O38 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Government Policy

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