Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/101107 
Year of Publication: 
2014
Series/Report no.: 
Working Papers in Economics and Statistics No. 2014-19
Publisher: 
University of Innsbruck, Research Platform Empirical and Experimental Economics (eeecon), Innsbruck
Abstract: 
Measuring innovation activities involves critical decisions in selecting appropriate indicators and levels of observation. The present article contributes to the literature on this subject by addressing innovation measurement on the regional level. The dimensionality of regional innovation is examined by applying a principal component analysis on seven innovation output indicators in European regions from the Community Innovation Survey and two traditional indicators, i.e. patent applications and R&D expenses. The analysis reveals that regional innovation indeed needs to be regarded as a multidimensional concept involving technological, commercial and service innovation. These distinct innovation activities exhibit clear regional patterns with both technological and service innovation concentrated in highly developed territories and urban areas displaying particularly strong innovation performance in services. In addition, commercially successful innovation appears clustered in backward regions and may thus be seen as imitation efforts and technology transfers from areas at the innovation frontier. Overall, the elaborated findings suggest that the selection of innovation indicators in empirical analyses demands appropriate motivation and theoretical guidance.
Subjects: 
regional innovation
innovation dimensions
Principal Component Analysis
patent applications
Community Innovation Survey
JEL: 
R11
O31
O33
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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