Published

Peer-reviewed publications

Like Stars: How Firms Learn at Scientific Conferences

Forthcoming at Management Science - Current version Here (SSRN)

with Stefano Baruffaldi

(Older version entitled ‘A Firm Scientific Community: Industry Participation and Knowledge Diffusion’: IZA DP)

Citation counts by type of authors’ affiliation and conference rank — **Abstract** Scientific conferences are an underexplored channel by which firms learn from science. Although attendance per se may be sufficient to lower search costs in relation to scientific knowledge, we show that active participation and corporate investments in reputation are necessary to establish the personal connections that act as the key learning channel. Using data from conference papers in computer science since the 1990s, we show that corporate investments in participation are both frequent and highly skewed, some firms contributing to a given conference scientifically, some as sponsors, and some doing both. We use direct flights as an instrumental variable for the probability that other scientists participate in the same conference as a firm and find that this increases the firm’s use of the scientists’ knowledge. However, the most significant benefits accrue if the firm seeks the spotlight by both sponsoring the conference and taking part in its scientific discourse. Additional analyses show that these efforts foretell research collaborations and suggest that participation is more relevant in circumstances where the conference helps to trigger personal interactions, even when knowledge search costs are otherwise low.

Stylized empirical setup — **Abstract** Scientific conferences are an underexplored channel by which firms learn from science. Although attendance per se may be sufficient to lower search costs in relation to scientific knowledge, we show that active participation and corporate investments in reputation are necessary to establish the personal connections that act as the key learning channel. Using data from conference papers in computer science since the 1990s, we show that corporate investments in participation are both frequent and highly skewed, some firms contributing to a given conference scientifically, some as sponsors, and some doing both. We use direct flights as an instrumental variable for the probability that other scientists participate in the same conference as a firm and find that this increases the firm’s use of the scientists’ knowledge. However, the most significant benefits accrue if the firm seeks the spotlight by both sponsoring the conference and taking part in its scientific discourse. Additional analyses show that these efforts foretell research collaborations and suggest that participation is more relevant in circumstances where the conference helps to trigger personal interactions, even when knowledge search costs are otherwise low.

Profit Taxation, R&D Spending and Innovation

Forthcoming at American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
Discussion Paper SSRN CEPR DP Twitter
Coverage VoxEU

with Andreas Lichter, Max Löffler, Ingo Isphording, Thu-Van Nguyen and Sebastian Siegloch

The Effect of a Business Tax Increase on Total R&D Spending — **Abstract** We study how profit taxation affects plants’ R&D spending and innovation activities. Relying on geocoded survey panel data which approximately covers the universe of R&D-active plants in Germany, we exploit around 7,300 changes in the municipal business tax rate over the period 1987-2013 for identification. Applying event study models, we find a negative and statistically significant effect of an increase in profit taxation on plants’ R&D spending with an implied long-run elasticity of -1.25. Reductions in R&D are particularly strong among more credit-constrained plants. In contrast, homogeneity of effects across the plant size distribution questions policy makers common practice to link targeted R&D tax incentives to plant size. We further find lagged negative effects on the (citation-weighted) number of filed patents.

Science quality and the value of inventions

Science Advances 11 Dec 2019: Vol. 5, no. 12, eaay7323 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aay7323

Coverage Research Europe

with Dietmar Harhoff, Fabian Gaessler and Stefano Baruffaldi

SNPL references by science quality — **Abstract** Despite decades of research, the relationship between the quality of science and the value of inventions has remained unclear. We present the result of a large-scale matching exercise between 4.8 million patent families and 43 million publication records. We find a strong positive relationship between the quality of the scientific contributions referenced in patents and the value of the respective inventions. We rank patents by the quality of the science to which they are linked. Strikingly, high-ranking patents are twice as valuable as low-ranking patents, which, in turn, are about as valuable as patents without a direct science link. We show this core result for various science quality and patent value measures. The effect of science quality on patent value remains relevant even when science is linked indirectly through other patents. Our findings imply that what is considered excellent within the science sector also leads to outstanding outcomes in the technological and commercial realms.

Patent value by SNPL science quality — **Abstract** Despite decades of research, the relationship between the quality of science and the value of inventions has remained unclear. We present the result of a large-scale matching exercise between 4.8 million patent families and 43 million publication records. We find a strong positive relationship between the quality of the scientific contributions referenced in patents and the value of the respective inventions. We rank patents by the quality of the science to which they are linked. Strikingly, high-ranking patents are twice as valuable as low-ranking patents, which, in turn, are about as valuable as patents without a direct science link. We show this core result for various science quality and patent value measures. The effect of science quality on patent value remains relevant even when science is linked indirectly through other patents. Our findings imply that what is considered excellent within the science sector also leads to outstanding outcomes in the technological and commercial realms.

Estimating measures of multidimensional poverty with Stata

The Stata Journal (2017) 17, Number 3, pp. 687–703 URL: Stata Journal

with Daniele Pacifico

Abstract In this article, we describe the multidimensional poverty measures developed by Alkire and Foster (2011, Journal of Public Economics 95: 476–487) and show how they can be computed with Stata by using the mpi command.

Other publications

Linked Inventor Biography Data 1980-2014 (INV-BIO ADIAB 8014)

FDZ Data Report, No. 03/2018 URL: Report

with Matthias Dorner, Dietmar Harhoff, Fabian Gaessler and Karin Hoisl

Used in project Filling the Gap: The Consequences of Collaborator Loss in Corporate R&D.