Channels and benefits of interactions between public research organisations and industry: comparing four Latin American countries

Abstract

This paper compares the results of four country studies (Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica and Mexico) on the relative effectiveness of channels of interactions between public research organisations (PROs) and industry in driving specific types of benefits for researchers and firms. All studies used micro-datasets developed by a joint project using common questionnaires. Channels of interactions were classified into four groups (traditional, services, bi-directional and commercial) while benefits were classified into two groups for firms (short-term production and long-term innovation) and for researchers (economic and intellectual). It is found that the bi-directional (knowledge flows in both directions) and the services (knowledge flows mainly from PROs to firms) channels drive intellectual benefits for researchers. Firms tend to value the traditional channel (i.e. graduates, publications, conferences) more than any other channel. However, it is the bi-directional channel that drives the best benefits, especially those related to contributions to innovation activities.

The relationship between research funding and academic consulting: An empirical investigation in the Spanish context

“…Governments worldwide are calling for closer interaction between universities and industry based on the rationale that such interaction is instrumental for fostering technological development and economic achievement [7] and strengthens the co-evolution of scientific and commercial opportunities [29]. At the same time, sceptics point to the possible negative impact of universities' involvement in technology transfer for the production and advancement of scientific knowledge [19,21].…”

“…We control also for status, and the operational environment and field of the scientist. In particular, we control for the effects of the scientist's academic position 7 The National Plan standard grants are the main national level competitive grants available to Spanish academic researchers (see www.idi.mineco.gob.es for further details). 8 The quinquenio (literally 5-year period) is a form of recognition granted to academic scientists based on their experience, which affects their salaries.…”

Revista de Economia, Vol. 37, N.º Especial (2011)

“…Nos países menos desenvolvidos, este tema recentemente tem recebido mais atenção, fomentando, sobretudo, estudos na América Latina (Stuz, 2000;Dutrénit;. Justamente, nestes países, a interação ciência e tecnologia mostra-se fundamental para o processo de catching-up, o que significa a adoção de políticas públicas que promovam o suporte e o fortalecimento das instituições científicas, implicando profundo compromisso com o progresso social, especialmente com aumento do nível educacional da população (Bernanrdes; Albuquerque, 2003).…”

Capacidade De Absorção E Canais De Interação Universidade-Empresa: Uma Análise Empírica Para Empresas No Rio Grande Do Sul

“…Para Arza (2010), as empresas podem interagir com universidades visando suas atividades de produção de curto prazo (solucionar problemas produtivos de curto prazo, como busca de conselhos e informações, realizar testes, controle da qualidade, etc.) ou para contribuir com suas estratégias de inovação de longo prazo (construção de capacidades, aumentar a capacidade de absorção, busca de parceiros para atividades de pesquisa que complementem ou substituam o P&D).…”

“…Complementar a isso, a literatura aponta que empresas com maiores CAs buscam inovar mais, sendo mais proativas, visando aproveitar mais rapidamente oportunidades tecnológicas (BOSCH; VOLBERDA; BOER, 1999) e possuindo maiores capacidades para tal (COHEN; LEVINTHAL, 1990). Dessa forma, tais empresas tenderiam a buscar objetivos mais de longo prazo -como construções de capacidades -utilizando canais bidirecionais, como as pesquisas conjuntas (ARZA, 2010).…”