Corporate Innovation and the Technological Advantage of British Regions in the Interwar Period

74 Pages Posted: 13 Aug 2015

See all articles by John A. Cantwell

John A. Cantwell

Rutgers Business School - Newark and New Brunswick

Anna Spadavecchia

University of Reading

Date Written: August 12, 2015

Abstract

This paper investigates the international technological specialization of the British regions in the interwar period. It is based on a novel dataset of more than 8,000 patents granted in the USA to British inventions. The analysis focuses on the impact of the dispersion of corporate innovation on the pattern of regional technological advantage, and contributes to the debate concerning the role of corporate innovation in the international relative decline of the British economy in the interwar period. Overall, the rise of corporate innovation in the largest firms in Britain did play a significant role in the technological profile of the regions. However, corporate innovation was only to a limited extent associated with the technological fields characterised by high technological opportunities.

Keywords: Innovation, technological advantage, British regions, interwar Britain, corporations

JEL Classification: N14, O31, O32, R12, N94, N84, L22

Suggested Citation

Cantwell, John A. and Spadavecchia, Anna, Corporate Innovation and the Technological Advantage of British Regions in the Interwar Period (August 12, 2015). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2643008 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2643008

John A. Cantwell

Rutgers Business School - Newark and New Brunswick ( email )

1 Washington Park
Newark, NJ 07102
United States

Anna Spadavecchia (Contact Author)

University of Reading ( email )

Greenlands
Reading, Henley on Thames RG6 6AH
United Kingdom

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