Do R&D subsidies promote or inhibit firm R&D collaboration? An empirical analysis on the role of risk tolerance in China

Duan Liu, Tingfang Zhang, Yuntian Jiang and Hong Wan

Global Finance Journal, 2025, vol. 64, issue C

Abstract: Previous studies on behavioral additionality theory suggest that government R&D subsidies can positively influence R&D collaboration by enhancing firms' learning capabilities. However, few studies address the potential impact of R&D subsidies on firms' risk tolerance for innovation uncertainty. This study examines how government R&D subsidies influence R&D collaboration, using a sample of Chinese firms listed on the Growth Enterprises Market between 2009 and 2020. Our findings reveal a negative behavioral additionality of R&D subsidies on collaboration: subsidies increase firms' risk tolerance for innovation uncertainty, motivating them to pursue independent innovations and, in turn, reducing their engagement in R&D collaboration. Heterogeneity analysis further shows that this inhibitory effect of R&D subsidies is more pronounced in firms with lower financial constraints, in more competitive industries, and in non-state-owned enterprises.

Keywords: R&D subsidies; R&D collaboration; Risk tolerance; Behavioral additionality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S104402832500002X
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:glofin:v:64:y:2025:i:c:s104402832500002x

DOI: 10.1016/j.gfj.2025.101075

Access Statistics for this article

Global Finance Journal is currently edited by Manuchehr Shahrokhi

More articles in Global Finance Journal from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().