Working Paper: NBER ID: w8977
Authors: Josh Lerner
Abstract: The paper seeks to understand the impact of the patent system on innovation by examining shifts in the strength of patent protection across sixty countries and a 150-year period. An examination of 177 policy changes reveals that strengthening patent protection appears to have few positive effects on patent applications by entities in the country undertaking the policy change, whether filings in Great Britain or the nation making the policy change are considered. Cross-sectional analyses suggest that the impact of patent protection-enhancing shifts were greater in nations with weaker initial protection and greater economic development, consistent with economic theory. I address concerns about the endogeneity of these changes by employing an instrumental variable approach.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: O31; O34
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Strengthening patent protection (O34) | Patent applications (O34) |
| Patent policy changes (O38) | Innovation (O35) |
| Changes in patent filings by residents (O39) | Patent applications (O34) |
| Patenting activity in nations with varying levels of patent protection (O34) | Patent applications (O34) |
| Patenting activity in Great Britain (O34) | Patent applications (O34) |