Foundations of the Economics of Innovation : Theory, Measurement and Practice

This important new book presents the theoretical, econometric and applied foundations of the economics of innovation as well as offering a new approach to the measurement of technical change. The author, a leading expert in innovation economics and management, critically reviews current schools of thought and presents his own contribution to measurement techniques. Measurements of technical change have focused on the characteristics of price and quantity whilst useful theories and reliable indicators of the quality of innovation in new products have been sorely lacking. The author examines the theoretical foundations of the measurement of technical change and extends the analysis to consider the econometric and empirical perspective in the process of innovation. He outlines the key contributions to innovation research by reviewing the English-language literature and providing a very useful guide to the most important contributions in other languages. In the measurement of the quality of innovation, the techniques used in the author's contribution to new 'technometrics' are presented and explained in detail and are applied to the most important topical problems in innovation and management. This significant addition to the literature will be invaluable to graduates, scholars and managers working in the area of technical change, technology and innovation management.