The influence of key enabling technologies on technological innovation

Colin Wessendorf

No 2403, Bremen Papers on Economics & Innovation from University of Bremen, Faculty of Business Studies and Economics

Abstract: Key enabling technologies (KETs) have gained attention in science and policy due to their multidisciplinary nature and their ability to link distant knowledge fields, endowing them with a central role in recombinant innovation processes. However, it remains under-researched whether KETs generally have a higher influence on innovation processes than non-KETs. This study addresses the question by using propensity score matching and regression analysis. First, a balanced dataset is created through matching KET patents to non-KET patents that stem from a comparable context. Subsequently, it is analyzed whether KET patents are associated with higher forward citation frequencies than non-KETs. The results show that KETs receive more citations on average, but it appears that this effect is driven by a few very impactful patents. The results further show that not all KETs exert a measurable impact on forward citations and highlight the heterogeneities between the individual KETs. These findings call for a more critical assessment of the KET concept and for nuanced approaches in research and policy.

Keywords: Key enabling technologies; general purpose technologies; recombinant novelty; technological impact; patent citations; propensity score matching (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C21 O30 O31 O33 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 61 pages
Date: 2024-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cse, nep-ino, nep-sbm and nep-tid
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:atv:wpaper:2403

DOI: 10.26092/elib/3553

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