Federal R and D Spending in the United States of America: Some impacts on metropolitan economies

Abstract

Malecki E. J. (1982) Federal R & D Spending in the Unitd States of America: some impacts on metropolitan economies, Reg. Studies 16, 19–35. Government R and D spending in the United States of America is highly concentrated in a small number of metropolitan areas. The effects of this spending are conceptualized in the context of technological change, and in terms of local income effects, agglomeration and spin-off processes, and inter-urban subcontracting linkages. Description of the location pattern of federal R and D spending reveals a highly agglomerated pattern in a few specialized urban regions. Inter-urban linkages through subcontracting for R and D tend to link fewer urban areas than do non-R and D linkages, reinforcing the concentrated pattern. Income change in metropolitan regions appears to be negatively influenced by federal R and D, suggesting that positive local effects are more likely derived from the more complex processes of agglomeration and spin-off.