The source of the US /EU productivity gap: Less and less efective R&D

Arbeitspapier

Using data on the US and EU top R&D spenders from 2004 until 2012, this paper investigates the sources of the US/EU productivity gap. We find robust evidence that US firms have a higher capacity to translate R&D into productivity gains (especially in the high-tech industries), and this contributes to explaining the higher productivity of US firms. Conversely, EU firms are more likely to achieve productivity gains through capital-embodied technological change at least in medium and low-tech sectors. Our results also show that the US/EU productivity gap has worsened during the crisis period, as the EU companies have been more affected by the economic crisis in their capacity to translate R&D investments into productivity. Based on these findings, we make a case for a learning-based and selective R&D funding, which - instead of purely aiming at stimulating higher R&D expenditures - works on improving the firms' capabilities to transform R&D into productivity gains.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: LEM Working Paper Series ; No. 2018/16

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes ; Economywide Country Studies: U.S.; Canada ; Economywide Country Studies: Europe
• Subject: R&D ; productivity ; economic crisis

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Castellani, Davide ; Piva, Mariacristina ; Schubert, Torben ; Vivarelli, Marco
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM)
• (where): Pisa
• (when): 2018

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/203069
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:42 AM CET