技术知识多样性的双重作用:专利受理及创新影响——基于对象—过程视角的研究

The Dual Role of Technical Knowledge Diversity: Patent Approval and Innovation Impact——Research Based on Object-Process Perspective

针对技术知识多样性在创新中作用特征的争论,本文在区分不同作用对象及过程的基础上,以我国智能手机产业的29287条发明专利为研究样本,利用Heckman样本选择模型,首先,探讨了技术知识多样性在专利受理过程中对专利审查员的影响以及在技术扩散产生创新影响过程中对后续发明人的影响。实证表明,技术知识多样性越高的发明,越能够得到后续发明者的认可,带来较高的创新影响,但对专利审查员而言,该类发明获得授权的概率越低。其次,利用模型的样本选择差异,考察了专利审查员所扮演的"制度守门人"角色在技术知识多样性与创新影响两者关系中的作用,研究发现相比于技术知识多样性较低的发明,技术知识多样性较高的发明,其较低的授权率源于审查过程中较高的误判率,从而使专利受理过程掩盖了部分技术知识多样性对创新影响的促进作用。本研究通过将专利受理过程纳入技术知识多样性与创新影响关系分析框架,突出了创新过程的制度基础及制约因素,同时也为我国专利受理过程的完善提供了相应的理论支持。

For controversy over the role of technological knowledge diversity in innovation, this paper distinguished the role objects and processes to carry out empirical research by using the data of 29,287 invention patents in smartphone industry and the method of Heckman sample selection model. Firstly, we examined the role of technological knowledge diversity on patent examiners in the process of approval and on the subsequent examiners in the process of technology diffusion. Empirical studies found that the inventions with higher diversity of knowledge can be acknowledged by the subsequent inventors and incur higher innovation impact. However, they may have lower probability of being granted for patent examiners. Secondly, using the difference of sample selection, we examined the role of ＂institutional gatekeeper＂ played by patent examiners in the relationship between technical knowledge diversity and innovation impact, and foundthat compared with patents with low technical knowledge diversity, the invention with higher technical knowledge diversity has a lower approval rate due to the higher misjudgment rate in the approval process, thus making the patent approval process mask some contribution of technical knowledge diversity to the impact of innovation.