Does Social Capital Reinforce Technological Inputs in the Creation of Knowledge? Evidence from the Spanish Regions

MIGUELEZ E., MORENO R. and ARTIS M. Does social capital reinforce technological inputs in the creation of knowledge? Evidence from the Spanish regions, Regional Studies. This paper seeks to verify the hypothesis that trust and cooperation between individuals, and between them and public institutions, can encourage technological innovation and the adoption of knowledge. Additionally, the paper tests the extent to which the interaction of social capital with human capital and research and development expenditures improve their effect on a region's ability to innovate. The empirical evidence is taken from the Spanish regions and employs a knowledge production function and longitudinal count data models. The results suggest that social capital correlates positively with innovation. Further, the analysis reveals a powerful interaction between human and social capital in the production of knowledge, whilst the complementarity with research and development efforts would seem less clear.