Measuring absorptive capacity of national innovation systems

Effelsberg Martin

Abstract
A rising competitive pressure for innovation comes along with an increasing number of companies and public research facilities that include external sources of information into the innovation process. Beside the trend of integrating knowledge from outside the firm's boundaries, an increasing internationalization of R&D can be observed in several branches, such as the pharmaceutical and chemical industry in Germany. This comes along with an increasing amount of knowledge transferred between national and international innovation actors. The absorption of external knowledge has thus become a significant factor of success. This article examines the following questions: Which factors determine the absorptive capacity of national economies? How can these factors be operationalized and how can an adequate framework to increase national absorptive capacity be developed?

Keywords
Absorptive Capacity; National Innovation System