Expenditure on research and development (R&D) has increased significantly in Germany and China in recent years. The resulting output growth is, however, lower than expected in both countries. “This indicates that research productivity in both economies is too weak,” explains Dr. Philipp Boeing, senior researcher and China expert at ZEW Mannheim. In a ZEW policy brief published today, he and Paul Hünermund, PhD, assistant professor at the Copenhagen Business School, have analysed how investment in R&D is related to research productivity in Germany and China. They conclude that in order to achieve sustained growth rates in Europe, “an innovation policy is needed that takes a bottom-up approach and does not rely too heavily on mission-driven research policies. This is the only way to achieve breakthrough innovations that can compete globally with the leading industrialised countries. China’s strongly mission-driven innovation policy cannot serve as a role model in this regard.”
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