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Reagan’s Innovation Dividend? Technological Impacts of the 1980s US Defense Build-Up

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  • Draca, Mirko

    (University of Warwick)

Abstract

US government spending since World War II has been characterized by large investments in defense related goods, services and R&D. In turn, this means that the Department of Defense (DoD) has had a large role in funding corporate innovation in the US. This paper looks at the impact of military procurement spending on corporate innovation among publicly traded firms for the period 1966-2003. The study utilizes a major database of detailed, historical procurement contracts for all Department of Defense (DoD) prime contracts since 1966. Product-level spending shifts – chiefly centered around the Reagan defense build-up of the 1980s – are used as a source of exogenous variation in firm-level procurement receipts. Estimates indicate that defense procurement has a positive absolute impact on patenting and R&D investment, with an elasticity of approximately 0.07 across both measures of innovation. In terms of magnitudes, the contribution of defense procurement to innovation peaked during the early Reagan build-up, accounting for 11.4% of the total change in patenting intensity and 6.5% for R&D. This compares to defense sector share in output of around 4%. The later defense cutbacks under Bush Senior and Clinton then curbed the growth in technological intensity by around 2%.

Suggested Citation

  • Draca, Mirko, 2013. "Reagan’s Innovation Dividend? Technological Impacts of the 1980s US Defense Build-Up," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 168, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    • Handle: RePEc:cge:wacage:168
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    File URL: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/research/centres/cage/manage/publications/168-2013_draca.pdf
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Dirk Czarnitzki & Paul Hünermund & Nima Moshgbar, 2018. "Public procurement as policy instrument for innovation," Working Papers of Department of Economics, Leuven 606259, KU Leuven, Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB), Department of Economics, Leuven.
    2. Lin, Yatang & Qin, Yu & Xie, Zhuan, 2021. "Does foreign technology transfer spur domestic innovation? Evidence from the high-speed rail sector in China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(1), pages 212-229.
    3. Howell, Sabrina T. & Rathje, Jason & Van Reenen, John & Wong, Jun, 2021. "Opening up military innovation: causal effects of reforms to US defense research," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 114430, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Pallante, Gianluca & Russo, Emanuele & Roventini, Andrea, 2023. "Does public R&D funding crowd-in private R&D investment? Evidence from military R&D expenditures for US states," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(8).
    5. Yatang Lin & Yu Qin & Zhuan Zie, 2015. "International Technology Transfer and Domestic Innovation: Evidence from the High-Speed Rail Sector in China," CEP Discussion Papers dp1393, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    6. Howell, Sabrina T. & Rathje, Jason & Van Reenen, John & Wong, Jun, 2021. "Opening up Military Innovation: Causal Effects of 'Bottom-up' Reforms to U.S. Defense Research," IZA Discussion Papers 14297, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Lei Kong, 2020. "Government Spending and Corporate Innovation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 66(4), pages 1584-1604, April.
    8. Deleidi, Matteo & Mazzucato, Mariana, 2021. "Directed innovation policies and the supermultiplier: An empirical assessment of mission-oriented policies in the US economy," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(2).

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    Keywords

    Regan; Military; procurement;
    All these keywords.

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