What do Scientists Want: Money or Fame?

Devrim Göktepe-Hultén () and Prashanth Mahagaonkar
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Prashanth Mahagaonkar: Max Planck Institute of Economics

No 2008-032, Jena Economics Research Papers from Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena

Abstract: What makes scientists patent and disclose inventions to employers? Using a new dataset on Max Planck scientists, we explore their motivations to patent and/or disclose inventions. We propose that patenting need not be used for monetary benefits. Scientists value reputation as important use patenting and disclosures as a signal to gain it. We find that it is not monetary benefits that drive patenting and disclosures but expectation of reputation. We also find that experience with the employer matters for disclosure of inventions. This may imply that patents are indeed used as information transfer mechanisms with prime motivation being reputation.

Keywords: university patenting; inventors; incentives (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: B31 C12 O31 O34 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2008-04-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ino, nep-ipr, nep-pr~ and nep-sog
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:jrp:jrpwrp:2008-032

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