IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/mul/je8794/doi10.1429-78558y2014i1p5-50.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Metrics of Innovation: Measuring the Italian Gap

Author

Listed:
  • Michele Benvenuti
  • Luca Casolaro
  • Elena Gennari

Abstract

The paper surveys the literature on the measurement of innovation activity and evaluates the position of Italy with respect to the other major European countries. As a complex and multidimensional phenomenon, innovation has been measured from different perspectives: the environment in which firms operate, firms' commitment, its outcome. A significant gap is found for Italy on most measures of innovation. Italy shows the largest gap for measures related to regulatory frameworks, ICT infrastructure and financial support for innovation expenditure. Italian firms stand out for the low level of inputs, especially the ratio of R&D expenditure and the presence of graduates. This feature is not just driven by firms' small average size: the analysis of expenditure by size shows that large Italian firms lag behind in the international comparison. A relatively large share of Italian firms claims however to innovate, even if their R&D expenditure is low. In defending intellectual property rights, firms rely more on industrial designs and trademarks than on patents. Overall, the survey confirms that innovation in Italy is more incremental than based on technology and R&D, therefore less able to increase firms' productivity and overall growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Michele Benvenuti & Luca Casolaro & Elena Gennari, 2014. "Metrics of Innovation: Measuring the Italian Gap," Politica economica, Società editrice il Mulino, issue 1, pages 5-50.
    • Handle: RePEc:mul:je8794:doi:10.1429/78558:y:2014:i:1:p:5-50
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.rivisteweb.it/download/article/10.1429/78558
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers
    File URL: https://www.rivisteweb.it/doi/10.1429/78558
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mairesse, Jacques & Mohnen, Pierre, 2010. "Using Innovation Surveys for Econometric Analysis," Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, in: Bronwyn H. Hall & Nathan Rosenberg (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 0, pages 1129-1155, Elsevier.
    2. Messinis, George & Ahmed, Abdullahi D., 2013. "Cognitive skills, innovation and technology diffusion," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 565-578.
    3. Hall, B.H., 2011. "Innovation and productivity," MERIT Working Papers 2011-028, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    4. Bronwyn H. Hall & Nathan Rosenberg (ed.), 2010. "Handbook of the Economics of Innovation," Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, Elsevier, edition 1, volume 1, number 1.
    5. Michael Spence & Sandile Hlatshwayo, 2012. "The Evolving Structure of the American Economy and the Employment Challenge," Comparative Economic Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Association for Comparative Economic Studies, vol. 54(4), pages 703-738, December.
    6. Carlo Altomonte & Tommaso Aquilante & Gianmarco Ottaviano, . "The triggers of competitiveness- The EFIGE cross-country report," Blueprints, Bruegel, number 738, June.
    7. Granturco Mariagrazia & Maria Grazia Miele, 2011. "The Italian private equity funds: an analysis of the portfolio companies� economic and financial conditions," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 98, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    8. International Finance Corporation & World Bank, 2012. "Doing Business 2012 : Doing Business in a More Transparent World," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 5907.
    9. Vincenzo Spiezia, 2011. "Are ICT Users More Innovative?: an Analysis of ICT-Enabled Innovation in OECD Firms," OECD Journal: Economic Studies, OECD Publishing, vol. 2011(1), pages 1-21.
    10. Andrea Brandolini & Matteo Bugamelli & Guglielmo Barone & Antonio Bassanetti & Magda Bianco & Emanuele Breda & Emanuela Ciapanna & Federico Cingano & Francesco D'Amuri & Leandro D'Aurizio & Virginia D, 2009. "Report on trends in the Italian productive system," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 45, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    11. Colin M. Mason & Richard T. Harrison, 2008. "Measuring business angel investment activity in the United Kingdom: a review of potential data sources," Venture Capital, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 10(4), pages 309-330, July.
    12. Bruno Crépon & Emmanuel Duguet & Jacques Mairesse, 2000. "Mesurer le rendement de l'innovation," Économie et Statistique, Programme National Persée, vol. 334(1), pages 65-78.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Graziella Bonanno, 2016. "ICT and R&D as inputs or efficiency determinants? Analysing Italian manufacturing firms (2007–2009)," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 6(3), pages 383-404, December.
    2. R. Arbolino & R. Boffardi, 2017. "The Role of Regional Institutions in Research and Innovation Investments of Italy's Cohesion Policy," Rivista economica del Mezzogiorno, Società editrice il Mulino, issue 1-2, pages 167-192.
    3. Andrea Orame & Daniele Pianeselli, 2023. "Thinking the green transition: evidence from the automotive industry," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 767, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    4. Carlo Maria Arpaia & Raffaele Doronzo & Pasquale Ferro, 2013. "Innovation and government payments in the Italian digital agenda," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 169, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    5. Matteo Bugamelli & Francesca Lotti & Monica Amici & Emanuela Ciapanna & Fabrizio Colonna & Francesco D�Amuri & Silvia Giacomelli & Andrea Linarello & Francesco Manaresi & Giuliana Palumbo & Filippo , 2018. "Productivity growth in Italy: a tale of a slow-motion change," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 422, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    6. Jacopo Zotti & Rosita Pretaroli & Francesca Severini & Claudio Socci & Giancarlo Infantino, 2020. "Employment incentives and the disaggregated impact on the economy. The Italian case," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 37(3), pages 993-1032, October.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Bettina Peters & Mark J. Roberts & Van Anh Vuong & Helmut Fryges, 2013. "Estimating Dynamic R&D Demand: An Analysis of Costs and Long-Run Benefits," NBER Working Papers 19374, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Baumann, Julian & Kritikos, Alexander S., 2016. "The link between R&D, innovation and productivity: Are micro firms different?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(6), pages 1263-1274.
    3. Wadho, Waqar & Chaudhry, Azam, 2020. "Innovation Strategies and Productivity Growth in Developing Countries: Evidence from Pakistan," GLO Discussion Paper Series 466, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    4. Burcu Fazlıoğlu & Başak Dalgıç & Ahmet Burçin Yereli, 2019. "The effect of innovation on productivity: evidence from Turkish manufacturing firms," Industry and Innovation, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(4), pages 439-460, April.
    5. Juan Francisco De Negri & Simon Pezzutto & Sonia Gantioler & David Moser & Wolfram Sparber, 2020. "A Comprehensive Analysis of Public and Private Funding for Photovoltaics Research and Development in the European Union, Norway, and Turkey," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-23, May.
    6. Pierre Mohnen & Bronwyn Hall, 2013. "Innovation and Productivity: An Update," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 3(1), pages 47-65, June.
    7. Audretsch, David B. & Belitski, Maksim, 2020. "The role of R&D and knowledge spillovers in innovation and productivity," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    8. Bettina Peters & Rebecca Riley & Iulia Siedschlag & Priit Vahter & John McQuinn, 2014. "Innovation and Productivity in Services: Evidence from Germany, Ireland and the United Kingdom," JRC Working Papers on Corporate R&D and Innovation 2014-04, Joint Research Centre.
    9. J. David Brown & John S. Earle & Mee Jung Kim & Kyung Min Lee, 2019. "Immigrant Entrepreneurs and Innovation in the US High-Tech Sector," NBER Chapters, in: The Roles of Immigrants and Foreign Students in US Science, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship, pages 149-171, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Andrés Barge‐Gil & Alberto López & Ramón Núñez‐Sánchez, 2020. "Technological spillovers from multinational firms," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(12), pages 3184-3202, December.
    11. Çağatay Bircan & Ralph De Haas, 2020. "The Limits of Lending? Banks and Technology Adoption across Russia," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 33(2), pages 536-609.
    12. Andrés Barge-Gil & Alberto López, 2015. "R versus D: estimating the differentiated effect of research and development on innovation results," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 24(1), pages 93-129.
    13. Chiara Pederzoli & Grid Thoma & Costanza Torricelli, 2013. "Modelling Credit Risk for Innovative SMEs: the Role of Innovation Measures," Journal of Financial Services Research, Springer;Western Finance Association, vol. 44(1), pages 111-129, August.
    14. Jaan Masso & Amaresh K Tiwari, 2021. "Productivity Implications Of R&D, Innovation And Capital Accumulation For Incumbents And Entrants: The Case Of Estonia," University of Tartu - Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Working Paper Series 130, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, University of Tartu (Estonia).
    15. Eleonora Bartoloni & Maurizio Baussola, 2015. "Persistent Product Innovation and Market-oriented Behaviour: the Impact on Firms' Performance," DISCE - Quaderni del Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali dises1505, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Dipartimenti e Istituti di Scienze Economiche (DISCE).
    16. Crass, Dirk & Valero, Francisco Garcia & Pitton, Francesco & Rammer, Christian, 2019. "Protecting Innovation Through Patents and Trade Secrets: Evidence for Firms with a Single Innovation," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 26(1), pages 117-156.
    17. Carlo Altomonte & Tommaso Aquilante & Gábor Békés & Gianmarco I.P. Ottaviano, 2013. "Internationalization and innovation of firms: evidence and policy [Managing knowledge within and outside the multinational corporation]," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 28(76), pages 663-700.
    18. Avenyo, Elvis Korku & Konte, Maty & Mohnen, Pierre, 2019. "The employment impact of product innovations in sub-Saharan Africa: Firm-level evidence," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(9), pages 1-1.
    19. Tanel Rebane, 2018. "Complementarities In Performance Between Product Innovation, Marketing Innovation And Cooperation With Clients," University of Tartu - Faculty of Economics and Business Administration Working Paper Series 113, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, University of Tartu (Estonia).
    20. Ugur, Mehmet & Awaworyi, Sefa & Solomon, Edna, 2016. "Technological innovation and employment in derived labour demand models: A hierarchical meta-regression analysis," MPRA Paper 73557, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Innovation; R&D; Patents.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - General
    • O57 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Comparative Studies of Countries
    • L20 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - General
    • I25 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Economic Development
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:mul:je8794:doi:10.1429/78558:y:2014:i:1:p:5-50. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: the person in charge (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.rivisteweb.it/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.