This volume was prepared by Sebastian Benz while he was working at the Ifo Institute. It was completed in December 2013 and accepted as a doctoral thesis by the Department of Economics at the University of Munich. It includes five self-contained chapters. All chapters discuss different...

Applied economists and strategy scholars have examined a variety of firm-level factors that may explain the level and direction of firms' innovative effort and performance, including firms' profit incentives. Innovation at the firm level, however, should also depend heavily on the nature of the...

Aus dem Vorwort: Diese Arbeit will den technischen Informationsnutzen von Patenten aus der Sicht kleiner und mittlerer Unternehmen kritisch hinterfragen. Am Ende dieser Studie, in der Mitarbeiter der beteiligten Unternehmen in einem organisatorischen und technischen Kontext mit ausgewählten...