Can Higher Education, Economic Growth and Innovation Ability Improve Each Other?

Haiying Xu, Wei-Ling Hsu, Teen-Hang Meen and Ju Hua Zhu
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Haiying Xu: School of Urban and Environmental Science, Huaiyin Normal University, Huai’an 223300, China
Wei-Ling Hsu: School of Urban and Environmental Science, Huaiyin Normal University, Huai’an 223300, China
Teen-Hang Meen: Department of Electronic Engineering, National Formosa University, Yunlin 632, Taiwan
Ju Hua Zhu: Department of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, Korea

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 6, 1-18

Abstract: This study argues that the coupling between higher education, economic growth, and innovation ability is of great significance for regional sustainable development. Through the experience of Jiangsu Province in China, this study establishes a coupling coordination evaluation index system and applies the coupling coordination model to evaluate interactive relationships among the three. It finds that during 2007–2017, the level of coupling of 13 prefecture-level cities in Jiangsu was increasing over time, which fully verified the previous scholars’ view that the three can improve each other over a long period. However, this study finds that there are obvious differences within Jiangsu. Inadequate investment in higher education has become a crucial constraint on sustainable economic growth in northern and central Jiangsu, which are backward regions of Jiangsu. By contrast, in southern Jiangsu, which is the advanced region of Jiangsu, although the resources of higher education are abundant the growth of innovation ability cannot support sustained economic growth well. Thus, the quality of higher education should be improved to meet the needs of the innovation-based economy. Accordingly, cross-regional cooperation and balanced investment in higher education are the keys to practicing a balanced and sustained regional development. The results of this study’s coupling coordination analysis and evaluation can serve as a reference for governments in enhancing regional sustainable development.

Keywords: higher education; innovation ability; economic growth; coupling coordination; Jiangsu province (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

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