The Impact of the SBIR on Creating Entrepreneurial Behavior

Abstract

The U.S. Congress created the Small Business Innovation Research program in 1982 in response to the loss of American competitiveness in global markets. Congress mandated that each federal agency allocate approximately 4% of its annual budget to fund innovative small firms to help restore American international competitiveness. This article examines the impact of the SBIR. Specifically, the authors identify the degree to which (a) SBIR recipients have altered their career choices as a result of the award, particularly with respect to commercialization in the form of a new firm, and (b) their behavior has “spilled over” by inducing other colleagues to commercialize their knowledge by starting a new firm. This enables one to determine how the SBIR has contributed to changing the behavior of knowledge workers and to the creation of a science-based entrepreneurial economy.