Geographic localization of knowledge spillovers as evidenced by patent citations

Adam B. Jaffe*, Manuel Trajtenberg, Rebecca Henderson

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4702 Scopus citations

Abstract

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.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)577-598
Number of pages22
JournalQuarterly Journal of Economics
Volume108
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 1993

Funding

FundersFunder number
Ameritech Foundation
Lawrence Katz
National Science FoundationSES91-10516
Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation
Baker-Nord Center for the Humanities, Case Western Reserve University

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