The role of firm R&D effort and collaboration as mediating drivers of innovation policy effectiveness

Abstract

This paper investigates the impact of firm R&D policies supporting R&D investment and collaboration on company innovation performance. Individual and cooperative R&D investments are considered as intermediate outcomes (input and behavioural additionality, respectively) contributing to the final outcome (probability of product innovation). We use a treatment random coefficient model to estimate the policy additionality on a panel data-set merging the third and the fourth wave of the Italian Community Innovation Survey. Results show a significant and positive policy impact on company propensity to product innovation only for the input additionality and for the interaction between the input and the cooperative additionality. This occurs when company cooperation scores overcome a given threshold, in accordance with the assumption that cooperation entails benefits but also coordination costs.

Keywords:

• R&D collaborations
• R&D policy
• additionality
• average treatment effect

JEL code:

• O31
• O38

Notes

¹ We grouped in one category the two types of partners given by universities and public research institutes – modalities (f) and (g) of this specific CIS question.