Geographic Localization of Knowledge Spillovers as Evidenced by Patent Citations

We compare the geographic location of patent citations with that of the cited patents, as evidence of the extent to which knowledge spillovers are geographically localized. We find that citations to domestic patents are more likely to be domestic, and more likely to come from the same state and SMSA...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Quarterly journal of economics 1993-08, Vol.108 (3), p.577-598
Main Authors: Jaffe, Adam B., Trajtenberg, Manuel, Henderson, Rebecca
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Appropriate technology
Citation analysis
Corporate patents
Demographic aspects
Geodetic position
Industrial research
Inventions
Perceptual localization
Proportions
Research universities
Universities
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Description
Summary:We compare the geographic location of patent citations with that of the cited patents, as evidence of the extent to which knowledge spillovers are geographically localized. We find that citations to domestic patents are more likely to be domestic, and more likely to come from the same state and SMSA as the cited patents, compared with a “control frequency” reflecting the pre-existing concentration of related research activity. These effects are particularly significant at the local (SMSA) level. Localization fades over time, but only very slowly. There is no evidence that more “basic” inventions diffuse more rapidly than others.
ISSN:0033-5533
1531-4650
DOI:10.2307/2118401