Research And Development Productivity And Spillovers: Empirical Evidence At The Firm Level
综述了企业研发支出与生产率关系的实证文献，发现研发对绩效有显著正向影响，但估计回报因数据、模型和方法差异而不同；元分析显示不同国家的回报率无显著差异，但弹性存在差异，且1970年代以来弹性持续上升，反驳了研发机会枯竭的观点。
Abstract. A variety of methods have been used to investigate the empirical relationship between research and development (R&D) spending and the productivity of firms. The most widely employed frameworks are the production function and the associated productivity framework. In these settings, productivity growth is related to expenditures on R&D, and an attempt is made to estimate statistically the part of productivity growth that can be attributed to R&D activities. This article surveys the expansive body of empirical literature on this subject and finds a large and significant impact of R&D on firm performance on average. However, the estimated returns vary considerably between the different studies due to differences across data samples and econometric models, as well as methodological and conceptual issues. A meta‐analysis on the studies surveyed reveals that the estimated rates of return do not significantly differ between countries, whereas the estimated elasticities do. Furthermore, the estimated elasticities are significantly higher in the 1980s and consistently higher in the 1990s compared with the 1970s. Hence, contrary to a widely held belief, we find no convincing evidence of an exhaustion of R&D opportunities in the last two decades.