Patent citations, knowledge flows, and catching-up: Evidences of different national experiences for the period 1982–2006

Abstract

Abstract This paper uses information about patent citations to track the evolution of knowledge flows in selected countries engaged in catching-up processes. The analysis comprises patent citation data extracted from the USPTO database for the period 1982-2006. The data are presented through technological interaction matrices displaying the interaction between the technological fields of cited and citing patents. Each matrix cell matches the technological field(s) of one cited patent to the technological field(s) of its citing patent(s). The hypothesis is that the intensification and diversification of knowledge flows to a greater number of fields broadens the possibilities of identifying attractive opportunities for innovation, thereby multiplying the opportunities of development and catching-up. The analysis seeks to identify which technological fields concentrate the absorption and diffusion of knowledge in a given country over different periods, a consideration which tends to be related to the possibilities of catching-up processes.