The determinants of Innovation: An Empirical cross-country study of 43 countries for 1998-2002

This paper uses an extensive dataset compiled by the author to quantitatively study the determinants of academic and industry innovations measured by the numbers of journal publications, patents and Nobel Laureates. I use sensitivity analysis to test the robustness of estimates to specification change, IV estimation and differencing panel data to correct for endogeneity of explanatory variables due to omitted variable problem or measurement error problem. The determinants in consideration include educational achievement, participation and input, general R&D input intensity, rule of law infrastructure and openness to international trade. Particularly, the relationships between exam performance, tertiary education participation rate and innovativeness are examined. The main conclusion is that exam scores have no effect on creativity despite their significant positive effect on overall labor productivity. The participation rate of tertiary education is found more important than education input intensity for promoting innovativeness.