{"title":"Moderating Effect of Innovation Strategy on Learning-by-Exporting: A Cross-Country Study","authors":"Ruohan Wu","doi":"10.1007/s11293-024-09806-y","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper empirically examines the learning-by-exporting theory from a new angle: how firms innovate. Two different innovation strategies are studied. One is independent innovation if a firm conducts in-house research and development activities on its own and the other is spillover innovation if a firm adopts external technologies and knowledge from the others. Global firm-level data were acquired from the latest 2017–19 Business Environment and Enterprise Performance Survey. The learning-by-exporting effect is interpreted as a positive effect of firms’ exports on their productivity, which is estimated semi-parametrically. After implementing a three-step estimation method that addresses endogeneity, the learning-by-exporting effect was found to be importantly subject to firms’ innovation strategies. Learning-by-exporting can only be significantly and robustly detected among firms with spillover innovation, whereas exports cannot always enhance independent innovators’ performance. Further heterogeneity tests support this finding. This paper suggests that the learning-by-exporting effect is essentially a technology spillover process, and it highlights the importance of both independent and spillover innovation that must be implemented and regulated properly.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":46061,"journal":{"name":"ATLANTIC ECONOMIC JOURNAL","volume":"52 2-3","pages":"131 - 144"},"PeriodicalIF":0.5000,"publicationDate":"2024-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s11293-024-09806-y.pdf","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"ATLANTIC ECONOMIC JOURNAL","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11293-024-09806-y","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"ECONOMICS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
This paper empirically examines the learning-by-exporting theory from a new angle: how firms innovate. Two different innovation strategies are studied. One is independent innovation if a firm conducts in-house research and development activities on its own and the other is spillover innovation if a firm adopts external technologies and knowledge from the others. Global firm-level data were acquired from the latest 2017–19 Business Environment and Enterprise Performance Survey. The learning-by-exporting effect is interpreted as a positive effect of firms’ exports on their productivity, which is estimated semi-parametrically. After implementing a three-step estimation method that addresses endogeneity, the learning-by-exporting effect was found to be importantly subject to firms’ innovation strategies. Learning-by-exporting can only be significantly and robustly detected among firms with spillover innovation, whereas exports cannot always enhance independent innovators’ performance. Further heterogeneity tests support this finding. This paper suggests that the learning-by-exporting effect is essentially a technology spillover process, and it highlights the importance of both independent and spillover innovation that must be implemented and regulated properly.
期刊介绍:
The Atlantic Economic Journal (AEJ) has an international reputation for excellent articles in all interest areas, without regard to fields or methodological preferences. Founded in 1973 by the International Atlantic Economic Society, a need was identified for increased communication among scholars from different countries. For over 30 years, the AEJ has continuously sought articles that traced some of the most critical economic changes and developments to occur on the global level. The journal''s goal is to facilitate and synthesize economic research across nations to encourage cross-fertilization of ideas and scholarly research. Contributors include some of the world''s most respected economists and financial specialists, including Nobel laureates and leading government officials. AEJ welcomes both theoretical and empirical articles, as well as public policy papers. All manuscripts are submitted to a double-blind peer review process. In addition to formal publication of full-length articles, the AEJ provides an opportunity for less formal communication through its Anthology section. A small point may not be worthy of a full-length, formal paper but is important enough to warrant dissemination to other researchers. Research in progress may be of interest to other scholars in the field. A research approach ending in negative results needs to be shared to save others similar pitfalls. The Anthology section has been established to facilitate these forms of communication. Anthologies provide a means by which short manuscripts of less than 500 words can quickly appear in the AEJ. All submissions are formally reviewed by the Board of Editors. Officially cited as: Atl Econ J