Empirical Study On Cities’ Innovation Spatial Spillover In China

Cities create good environments for the generation and diffusion of innovation because they can gather people with different talents, education, culture and language. This paper summarizes the relevant theory of innovation spillover, specially including:its meaning and characteristics, internal mechanism, measure methods and effects’changing pattern with geographical distance, etc. Based on the panel data of 272 prefecture level cities from 2009 to 2012, spatial autocorrelation of cities’innovation is analyzed by spatial quantile map and Moran’s I index. Then cities’innovation spillover effect is measured through spatial weight matrix based on exponential decay and Spatial Durbin Model.The result is tested whether it is robust to the other two new spatial weight matrixes which are separately based on inverse geographical distance and inverse square geographical distance. And the direct effect and indirect effect of each independent variable on the dependent are decomposed by partial derivative method. The relationship of spillovers effect and geographic distance in China and three regions are explored. Results show that innovations in cities have positively significant spillovers effect and it is robust for other two spatial weight matrixes and different regions. From the view of all cities, all independents have positive effect on innovation and the three effects of the expenditure for R&D and per capita GDP are obvious. All independents have significantly positive influence on innovation in eastern cities. Scientific research personnel has not significantly indirect effect on innovation in middle cities. In western cites, the total effect of the expenditure for R&D and per capita GDP is obvious, the indirect effect of Scientific research personnel is negative, the three effects of FDI is not significant. Spillover effect of total cities is positive for the geographic distance from 150km to 1000km, and reaches the maximum at 650km. Spillover effect of east, middle and west region are separately from 100km to 325km, from 250km to 700km, from 350km to 950km, and reach the max value at 150km,550km and 750km. According to the conclusions, Cities should increase R&D investment intensity, abandon regional protectionism, take full advantage of the positive innovation spillover effect between adjacent cities, share resource and strengthen cooperation to promote cities’coordinated development.