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'A Far Friend is Worth More than a Good Neighbour': Proximity and Innovation in a Small Country

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  • Sjoerd Beugelsdijk
  • Maarten Cornet

Abstract

This paper is about the relationship betweeninnovation and geography. Much of theliterature on regional economics and innovationsuggests that knowledge spillovers are boundedby distance. But distance is a relative conceptand how local is local? Based on a uniquedataset of 1510 Dutch firms we examine whetherinnovative activity (R&D expenditures) haslarger spillover effects on the development ofnew products for firms nearby versus those faraway. We also consider the impact of proximityto research oriented institutes. We do not findthat proximity promotes industrial knowledgespillovers between firms within theNetherlands. We do find indications thatdistance limits spillovers from universities oftechnology. Our analysis suggests that a farfriend may be worth more than a goodneighbour. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 2002

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  • Sjoerd Beugelsdijk & Maarten Cornet, 2002. "'A Far Friend is Worth More than a Good Neighbour': Proximity and Innovation in a Small Country," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 6(2), pages 169-188, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jmgtgv:v:6:y:2002:i:2:p:169-188
    DOI: 10.1023/A:1015775321949
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    6. Jeffrey Yi-Lin Forrest & Zaiwu Gong, 2019. "Factors and Steps for Successful Transition from a State of Making to One of Innovating," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(15), pages 1-12, August.
    7. Harvey Goldstein & Joshua Drucker, 2006. "The Economic Development Impacts of Universities on Regions: Do Size and Distance Matter?," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 20(1), pages 22-43, February.
    8. Jakob Eder & Michaela Trippl, 2019. "Innovation in the periphery: compensation and exploitation strategies," PEGIS geo-disc-2019_07, Institute for Economic Geography and GIScience, Department of Socioeconomics, Vienna University of Economics and Business.
    9. Massimo Colombo & Luca Grilli, 2007. "Funding Gaps? Access To Bank Loans By High-Tech Start-Ups," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 29(1), pages 25-46, June.
    10. Jorge Luis Juliao Rossi & Fernando Barrios Aguirre & Jana Schmutzler & Iván Darío Sánchez Manchola, 2013. "Relación entre la estrategia de innovación de la firma y su decisión de patentar: evidencia de empresas pertenecientes al sector manufacturero colombiano," Estudios Gerenciales, Universidad Icesi, September.
    11. Hong, Jin & Feng, Bing & Wu, Yanrui & Wang, Liangbing, 2016. "Do government grants promote innovation efficiency in China's high-tech industries?," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 57, pages 4-13.
    12. Jun Koo & Tae‐Eun Kim, 2009. "When R&D matters for regional growth: A tripod approach," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 88(4), pages 825-840, November.
    13. Natalie Djodat & Dodo Knyphausen-Aufseß, 2017. "Revisiting Ghoshal and Bartlett’s Theory of the Multinational Corporation as an Interorganizational Network," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 57(3), pages 349-378, June.
    14. Mowery, David C. & Ziedonis, Arvids A., 2015. "Markets versus spillovers in outflows of university research," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(1), pages 50-66.
    15. P.H. van Dongen, 2011. "The Role and Contribution of Intellectual Property Rights in the Process of Spillover of Knowledge, Knowledge Valorization and Regional Economic Development," Chapters, in: Emiel F.M. Wubben (ed.), Institutions and Regulation for Economic Growth?, chapter 4, Edward Elgar Publishing.
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