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Characteristics of the Top R&D Performing Firms in the U.S.: Evidence from the Survey of Industrial R&D

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  • Lucia Foster
  • Cheryl Grim

Abstract

Innovation drives economic growth and productivity growth, and as such, indicators of innovative activity such as research and development (R&D) expenditures are of paramount importance. We combine Census confidential microdata from two sources in order to examine the characteristics of the top R&D performing firms in the U.S. economy. We use the Survey of Industrial Research and Development (SIRD) to identify the top 200 R&D performing firms in 2003 and, to the extent possible, to trace the evolution of these firms from 1957 to 2007. The Longitudinal Business Database (LBD) further extends our knowledge about these firms and enables us to make comparisons to the U.S. economy. By linking the SIRD and the LBD we are able to create a detailed portrait of the evolution of the top R&D performing firms in the U.S.

Suggested Citation

  • Lucia Foster & Cheryl Grim, 2010. "Characteristics of the Top R&D Performing Firms in the U.S.: Evidence from the Survey of Industrial R&D," Working Papers 10-33, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    • Handle: RePEc:cen:wpaper:10-33
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Aysun, Uluc, 2020. "Volatility costs of R&D," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 122(C).
    2. Daron Acemoglu & Ufuk Akcigit & Harun Alp & Nicholas Bloom & William Kerr, 2018. "Innovation, Reallocation, and Growth," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 108(11), pages 3450-3491, November.
    3. Uluc Aysun & Zeynep Yom, 2019. "R&D, innovation spillover and business cycles," Villanova School of Business Department of Economics and Statistics Working Paper Series 43, Villanova School of Business Department of Economics and Statistics.
    4. Daron Acemoglu & Ufuk Akcigit & Douglas Hanley & William Kerr, 2016. "Transition to Clean Technology," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 124(1), pages 52-104.
    5. Ufuk Akcigit & William R. Kerr, 2018. "Growth through Heterogeneous Innovations," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 126(4), pages 1374-1443.
    6. Juana Sanchez & Sydney Noelle Kahmann, 2017. "R&D, Attrition and Multiple Imputation in BRDIS," Working Papers 17-13, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    7. Lucia Foster & Cheryl Grim & Nikolas Zolas, 2020. "A portrait of U.S. firms that invest in R&D," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 89-111, January.
    8. Ufuk Akcigit & William R. Kerr, 2018. "Growth through Heterogeneous Innovations," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 126(4), pages 1374-1443.
    9. Anne Marie Knott, 2016. "Outsourced R&D and GDP Growth," Working Papers 16-19, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    10. Uluc Aysun & Melanie Guldi & Adam Honig & Zeynep Yom, 2020. "R&D, Market Power and the Cyclicality of Employment," Villanova School of Business Department of Economics and Statistics Working Paper Series 47, Villanova School of Business Department of Economics and Statistics.
    11. Douglas Hanley & Daron Acemoglu & Ufuk Akcigit & William Kerr, 2014. "Transition to Clean Technology," Working Paper 534, Department of Economics, University of Pittsburgh, revised Jan 2014.
    12. Uluc Aysun & Zeynep Yom, 2021. "R&D Characteristics, Innovation Spillover, and Technology-Driven Business Cycles," Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 339-365, September.
    13. Christian Awuku-Budu & Leo Sveikauskas, 2015. "Allocation of Company Research and Development Expenditures to Industries Using a Tobit Model," Working Papers 15-42, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    14. repec:zbw:bofrdp:2013_028 is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Christian Awuku-Budu & Leo Sveikauskas, 2015. "Allocation of Company Research and Development Expenditures to Industries Using a Tobit Model," BEA Working Papers 0129, Bureau of Economic Analysis.
    16. Juana Sanchez, 2014. "Innovation Output Choices And Characteristics Of Firms In The U.S," Working Papers 14-42, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    17. Uluc Aysun, 2023. "Technology diffusion and international business cycles," Working Papers 2023-02, University of Central Florida, Department of Economics.

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