This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

How Much Does Immigration Boost Innovation?

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Jennifer Hunt ()
Marjolaine Gauthier-Loiselle ()

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

We measure the extent to which skilled immigrants increase innovation in the United States by exploring individual patenting behavior as well as state-level determinants of patenting. The 2003 National Survey of College Graduates shows that immigrants patent at double the native rate, and that this is entirely accounted for by their disproportionately holding degrees in science and engineering. These data imply that a one percentage point rise in the share of immigrant college graduates in the population increases patents per capita by 6%. This could be an overestimate of immigration's benefit if immigrant investors crowd out native investors, or an underestimate if immigrantes have positive spill-overs on investors. Using a 1950-2000 state panel, we show that natives are not crowded out by immigrants, and that immigrants do have positive spill-overs, resulting in an increase in patents per capita of about 15% in response to a one percentage point increase in immigrant college graduates. We isolate the causal effect by instrumenting the change in the share of skilled immigrants in a state with the initial share of immigrant high school dropouts from Europe, China and India. In both data sets, the positive impacts of immigrant post-college graduates and scientists and engineers are larger than for immigrant college graduates.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://www.mcgill.ca/files/economics/howmuchdoes.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by McGill University, Department of Economics in its series Departmental Working Papers with number 2008-07.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length: 47 pages
Date of creation: Aug 2008
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:mcl:mclwop:2008-07

Contact details of provider:
Postal: 855 Sherbrooke St. W., Montr�al, Qu�bec, H3A 2T7
Phone: (514) 398-4850
Fax: (514) 398-4938
Web page: http://www.repec.mcgill.ca
More information through EDIRC

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Shama Rangwala).

Related research
Keywords:

Other versions of this item:

This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports: References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. William R. Kerr & William F. Lincoln, 2008. "The Supply Side of Innovation: H-1B Visa Reforms and US Ethnic Invention," Harvard Business School Working Papers 09-005, Harvard Business School. [Downloadable!]
  2. Paserman, Daniele, 2008. "Do High-Skill Immigrants Raise Productivity? Evidence from Israeli Manufacturing Firms, 1990-1999," IZA Discussion Papers 3572, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Bottazzi, Laura & Peri, Giovanni, 2003. "Innovation and spillovers in regions: Evidence from European patent data," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(4), pages 687-710, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  4. William R. Kerr, 2007. "The Ethnic Composition of US Inventors," Harvard Business School Working Papers 08-006, Harvard Business School. [Downloadable!]
  5. Annekatrin Niebuhr, 2006. "Migration and Innovation - Does Cultural Diversity Matter for Regional R&D Activity?," ERSA conference papers ersa06p31, European Regional Science Association. [Downloadable!]
  6. Jaffe, Adam B & Trajtenberg, Manuel & Henderson, Rebecca, 1993. "Geographic Localization of Knowledge Spillovers as Evidenced by Patent Citations," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 108(3), pages 577-98, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  7. Morgan, Robert P & Kruytbosch, Carlos & Kannankutty, Nirmala, 2001. " Patenting and Invention Activity of U.S. Scientists and Engineers in the Academic Sector: Comparisons with Industry," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 26(1-2), pages 173-83, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Ajay Agrawal & Devesh Kapur & John McHale, 2008. "Brain Drain or Brain Bank? The Impact of Skilled Emigration on Poor-Country Innovation," NBER Working Papers 14592, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Baker, Michael & Benjamin, Dwayne & Stanger, Shuchita, 1999. "The Highs and Lows of the Minimum Wage Effect: A Time-Series Cross-Section Study of the Canadian Law," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 17(2), pages 318-50, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Hicks, Diana & Breitzman, Tony & Olivastro, Dominic & Hamilton, Kimberly, 2001. "The changing composition of innovative activity in the US -- a portrait based on patent analysis," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(4), pages 681-703, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Lynne G. Zucker & Michael R. Darby, 2006. "Movement of Star Scientists and Engineers and High-Tech Firm Entry," NBER Working Papers 12172, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Jones, Charles I, 1995. "Time Series Tests of Endogenous Growth Models," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 110(2), pages 495-525, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  13. Aghion, Philippe & Howitt, Peter, 1992. "A Model of Growth through Creative Destruction," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 60(2), pages 323-51, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  14. Niebuhr, Annekatrin, 2006. "Migration and innovation : does cultural diversity matter for regional R&D activity?," IAB Discussion Paper 200614, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany]. [Downloadable!]
  15. Lynne G. Zucker & Michael R. Darby & Jonathan Furner & Robert C. Liu & Hongyan Ma, 2006. "Minerva Unbound: Knowledge Stocks, Knowledge Flows and New Knowledge Production," NBER Working Papers 12669, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. William R. Kerr, 2008. "The Agglomeration of US Ethnic Inventors," Harvard Business School Working Papers 09-003, Harvard Business School. [Downloadable!]
  2. William R. Kerr & William F. Lincoln, 2008. "The Supply Side of Innovation: H-1B Visa Reforms and US Ethnic Invention," Harvard Business School Working Papers 09-005, Harvard Business School. [Downloadable!]
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? IDEAS was sponsored from 1997 to 2002 by the Université du Québec à Montréal.

This page was last updated on 2009-11-19.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.