Labor mobility of scientists, technological diffusion, and the firm's patenting decision

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Kim, J; Marschke, G
• 署名单位: State University of New York (SUNY) System; University at Buffalo, SUNY; State University of New York (SUNY) System; University at Albany, SUNY
• 刊物名称: RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0741-6261
• 发表日期: 2005
• 页码: 298-317
• 关键词: data models; count data; ECONOMICS; localization; KNOWLEDGE

摘要

We develop and test a model of the patenting and R&D decisions of all innovating firm whose scientist-employees sometimes 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.