Is digital development a factor of university-industry R&D collaboration and vice versa?

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to determine and characterize relationships and their causality between indicators of digitalization of social relations and level of university-industry R&D collaboration. To conduct the research, a sample was formed for 20 countries of the world leaders in University-Industry R&D Collaboration indicator (as a part of Global Innovation Index) in 2022, which covers the following indices for period from 2011 to 2020: indicators of university-industry R&D collaboration, access to ICT, government online services, online creativity (as assessed by WIPO Global Innovation Index), and export of ICT goods (according to the World Bank). The methodological basis of the study was methods of correlation analysis (Pearson or Spearman, depending on data distribution, for which Shapiro-Wilk test for normal data distribution was previously applied) taking into account possible lags in time, VAR modelling, Granger test, and corresponding toolkit of STATA 18 software. As a result of the research, it was confirmed that the level of university-industry R&D collaboration is affected by such indicators of digitalization of social relations as online creativity (in 16 from 20 sample countries), access to ICT (in 12 countries) and the share of ICT goods exports in total exports (in 11 countries). At the same time, university-industry R&D collaboration is a cause of changes in the level of online creativity (in 15 from 20 sample countries), access to ICT (in 11 countries), public online services (in 10 from 19 sample countries) and the share of ICT goods exports (in 10 from 20 sample countries). The obtained results can be useful for stakeholders in R&D, innovative activities, development of state policy in the innovation and information sphere for making the most effective decisions in the context of stimulating the role of cooperation.