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Labor Mobility Of Scientists, Technological Diffusion, And The Firm’S Patenting Decision

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  • Jinyoung Kim
  • Gerald Marschke

Abstract

We develop and test a model of the patenting and R&D decisions of an innovating firm whose scientist-employees sometime quit to join or start a rival. In our model, the innovating firm patents to protect itself from its employees. We show theoretically that the risk of a scientist's departure reduces the firm’s R&D expenditures and raises its propensity to patent an innovation. We find evidence from firm-level panel data that is consistent with this latter result. Our results suggest that scientists' turnover is associated with cross-industry patenting variation and with recent economy-wide increases in patenting. Scientists’ turnover may also partly account for why small firms have high patent-R&D ratios

Suggested Citation

  • Jinyoung Kim & Gerald Marschke, 2004. "Labor Mobility Of Scientists, Technological Diffusion, And The Firm’S Patenting Decision," Econometric Society 2004 Far Eastern Meetings 586, Econometric Society.
    • Handle: RePEc:ecm:feam04:586
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    Cited by:

    1. Ejsing, Ann-Kathrine & Kaiser, Ulrich & Kongsted, Hans Christian & Laursen, Keld, 2013. "The Role of University Scientist Mobility for Industrial Innovation," IZA Discussion Papers 7470, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Jinyoung Kim & Sangjoon John Lee & Gerald Marschke, 2009. "International Knowledge Flows: Evidence from an Inventor-Firm Matched Data Set," NBER Chapters, in: Science and Engineering Careers in the United States: An Analysis of Markets and Employment, pages 321-348, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Burak Dindaroglu, 2010. "Intra-Industry Knowledge Spillovers and Scientific Labor Mobility," Discussion Papers 10-01, University at Albany, SUNY, Department of Economics.
    4. Heski Bar-Isaac & Ian Jewitt & Clare Leaver, 2007. "Information and Human Capital Managment," Working Papers 07-28, New York University, Leonard N. Stern School of Business, Department of Economics.
    5. Hans K. Hvide & Eirik Gaard Kristiansen, 2012. "Management of Knowledge Workers," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 55(4), pages 815-838.
    6. Baltzopoulos, Apostolos & Braunerhjelm, Pontus & Tikoudis, Ioannis, 2012. "Spin-off: Individual, Firm, Industry and Regional Determinants," Working Paper Series in Economics and Institutions of Innovation 265, Royal Institute of Technology, CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies.
    7. Matt Marx & Lee Fleming, 2012. "Non-compete Agreements: Barriers to Entry…and Exit?," NBER Chapters, in: Innovation Policy and the Economy, Volume 12, pages 39-64, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Bram Timmermans & Ron Boschma, 2014. "The effect of intra- and inter-regional labour mobility on plant performance in Denmark: the significance of related labour inflows," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 14(2), pages 289-311.
    9. Baltzopoulos, Apostolos, 2009. "The Firm and the Region as Breeding Grounds for Entrepreneurs," Working Paper Series in Economics and Institutions of Innovation 189, Royal Institute of Technology, CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies.
    10. Aloña Martiarena, 2012. "Mobility of Skills and Ideas," DRUID Working Papers 12-04, DRUID, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Industrial Economics and Strategy/Aalborg University, Department of Business Studies.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Labor market for scientists and engineers; patents; research and development; job turnover; mobility of scientists; technological diffusion;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J63 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Turnover; Vacancies; Layoffs
    • 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

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