Knowledge-Based Regional Economic Growth: The EU Perspective
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47743/saeb-2025-0043Keywords:
knowledge-based economy; , entrepreneurship;, regional development; , economic growth.Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to address the research gaps by conducting an empirical analysis of the relationship between variables determining Knowledge-Based Economies (KBEs) and GDP growth within the regions of the European Union at the NUTS 2 level. Findings indicate that gross expenditure on research and development and employment in the knowledge-intensive sector are positively associated with gross domestic product per capita at the regional level. Additionally, this paper shows evidence that innovation does not tend to be concentrated in regions with higher student numbers, which were used as a proxy for the concentration of research and educational institutions.
References
Aparicio, G., Iturralde, T., & Rodríguez, A. V. (2023). Developments in the Knowledge-Based Economy Research Field: A Bibliometric Literature Review. Management Review Quarterly, 73(November), 317-352. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11301-021-00241-w
Asian Development Bank. (2007). Official Website. Retrieved from https://www.adb.org/
Bąk, I., Wawrzyniak, K., & Oesterreich, M. (2022). Competitiveness of the Regions of the European Union in a Sustainable Knowledge-Based Economy. Sustainability (Basel), 14(7), 1-22. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su14073788
Behun, M., Gavurova, B., Tkacova, A., & Kotaskova, A. (2018). The Impact of the Manufacturing Industry on the Economic Cycle of European Union Countries. Journal of Competitiveness, 10(1), 23-39. http://dx.doi.org/10.7441/joc.2018.01.02
Boden, M., & Miles, I. (Eds.). (2001). Services and the Knowledge-Based Economy (1st ed.). London: Routledge.
Cameron, G. (2000). R&D and Growth at the Industry Level. Economics Papers(January), 1-22.
Chen, D. H. C., & Dahlman, C. J. (2005). The Knowledge Economy, the KAM Methodology, and World Bank Operations(October), 1-35. Retrieved from https://ssrn.com/abstract=841625
Collinge, C., & Staines, A. S. (2009). Rethinking the Knowledge-Based Economy. Built Environment, 35(2), 165-172. http://dx.doi.org/10.2148/benv.35.2.165
Cooke, P., De Laurentis, C., Tödtling, F., & Trippl, M. (2007). Regional Knowledge Economies: Markets, Clusters and Innovation Regional Knowledge Economies: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Cooke, P., & Leydesdorff, L. (2006). Regional Development in the Knowledge-Based Economy: The Construction of Advantage. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 31(November), 5-15. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10961-005-5009-3
Cowan, R., & Harison, E. (2001). Intellectual Property Rights in a Knowledge-Based Economy. MERIT-Infonomics Research Memorandum Series, 27. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.26481/umamer.2001027
Drucker, P. (1969). The Age of Discontinuity: Guidelines to Our Changing Society. New York: Harper and Row.
Drucker, P. (1998). From Capitalism to Knowledge Society. In D. Neef (Ed.), The Knowledge Economy (pp. 15-34): Butterworth-Heinemann.
Dyker, D. A., & Radosevic, S. (2000). Building the Knowledge-Based Economy in Countries in Transition—From Concepts to Policies. Journal of Interdisciplinary Economics, 12(1), 41-70. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/02601079X00001200103
Ejermo, O., Kander, A., & Svensson Henning, M. (2011). The R&D-Growth Paradox Arises in Fast-Growing Sectors. Research Policy, 40(5), 664-672. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2011.03.004
European Commission. (2014). EU Employment and Social Situation: Quarterly Review(Supplement September). Retrieved from https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2767/39959
Eurostat. (2022). Retrieved 10th June 2022, from Eurostat https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/explore/all/all_themes?lang=en&display=list&sort=category
Foray, D. (2002). Intellectual Property and Innovation in the Knowledge-Based Economy. Isuma, 3(1), 71-78.
Godin, B. (2006). The Knowledge-Based Economy: Conceptual Framework or Buzzword? The Journal of Technology Transfer, 31(November), 17-30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10961-005-5010-x
Godin, B. (2008). The Knowledge Economy: Fritz Machlup’s Construction of a Synthetic Concept. The Capitalization of Knowledge: A Triple Helix of University-Industry-Government(January), 1-33.
Hassani, U., Madhvani, S., Ongsysia, V. A. C., Sharif, I. A., & Strokova, V. (2022). Human Capital Umbrella Program Annual Report 2022 - Harnessing Catalytic Initiatives to Accelerate Investments in Human Capital. Retrieved from http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099706505112328300
Hausman, J. A. (1978). Specification Tests in Econometrics. Econometrica, 46(6), 1251-1271. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1913827
Johnston, B. F. (1970). Agriculture and Structural Transformation in Developing Countries: A Survey of Research. Journal of Economic Literature, 8(2), 369-404.
Kefela, G. (2010). Knowledge-Based Economy and Society Has Become a Vital Commodity to Countries. International NGO, 5(7), 160-166. http://dx.doi.org/10.5897/INGOJ.9000069
Kim, K., Kogler, D. F., Lee, C., & Kang, T. (2022). Changes in Regional Knowledge Bases and Its Effect on Local Labour Markets in the Midst of Transition: Evidence from France over 1985-2015. Applied Spatial Analysis and Policy, 16(May), 1-22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12061-022-09444-4
Leydesdorff, L., & Deakin, M. (2010). The Triple Helix Model and the Meta-Stabilization of Urban Technologies in Smart Cities. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.1003.3344
Machlup, F. (1962). The Production and Distribution of Knowledge in the United States. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
Mensah, M. S. B., & Enu-Kwesi, F. (2018). Research Collaboration for a Knowledge-Based Economy: Towards a Conceptual Framework. Triple Helix (Heidelberg), 5(1), 1-17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s40604-018-0049-5
Miles, I. (2003). Services and the Knowledge-Based Economy. Series on Technology Management, 9(September), 81-112. http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/9781848161306_0004
Miroshnychenko, I., Barontini, R., & De Massis, A. (2020). Investment Opportunities and R&D Investments in Family and Nonfamily Firms. R & D Management, 50(4), 447-461. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/radm.12392
Naudé, W., & Szirmai, A. (2012). The Importance of Manufacturing in Economic Development: Past, Present and Future Perspectives. MERIT Working Papers, 2012-041. Retrieved from https://ideas.repec.org/p/unm/unumer/2012041.html
Nelson, R. R. (1982). The Role of Knowledge in R&D Efficiency. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 97(3), 453-470. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1885872
OECD. (1996). The Knowledge-Based Economy (Vol. 2). Paris: OECD.
OECD. (1999). OECD Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard 1999: Benchmarking Knowledge-based Economies. Paris: OECD Publishing. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/sti_scoreboard-1999-en
OECD. (2022). OECD Regions and Cities at a Glance 2022. Paris: OECD Publishing. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/14108660-en
OECD, & Eurostat. (2005). Oslo Manual: Guidelines for Collecting and Interpreting Innovation Data (O. Publishing Ed. 3 ed.). Paris: OECD Publishing.
Powell, W. W., & Snellman, K. (2004). The Knowledge Economy. Annual Review of Sociology, 30(February), 199-220. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.29.010202.100037
Qian, H. (2018). Knowledge-Based Regional Economic Development: A Synthetic Review of Knowledge Spillovers, Entrepreneurship, and Entrepreneurial Ecosystems. Economic Development Quarterly, 32(2), 163-176. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0891242418760981
Sagiyeva, R., Zhuparova, A., Ruzanov, R., Doszhan, R., & Askerov, A. (2018). Intellectual Input of Development by Knowledge-based Economy: Problems of Measuring in Countries with Developing Markets. Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues, 6(2), 711-728. http://dx.doi.org/10.9770/jesi.2018.6.2(17)
Schumpeter, J. A. (1911). The Theory of Economic Development. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Schwartz, D. (2006). The Regional Location of Knowledge Based Economy Activities in Israel. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 31(November), 31-44. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10961-005-5011-9
Sterlacchini, A. (2008). R&D, Higher Education and Regional Growth: Uneven Linkages among European Regions. Research Policy, 37(6-7), 1096-1107. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2008.04.009
Tekic, Z., Drazic, M., Kukolj, D., & Vitas, M. (2014). From Patent Data to Business Intelligence–PSALM Case Studies. Procedia Engineering, 69(December), 296-303. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2014.02.235
Tsakalerou, M. (2018). Intellectual Property as a Key Driver of Business Performance: The Case of Singapore and Its Implications for Innovation in a Knowledge-based Economy. International Journal of Learning and Intellectual Capital, 15(1), 83-92. http://dx.doi.org/10.1504/IJLIC.2018.088347
United Natons Development Programme. (2021). UNDP Annual Report 2021. Retrieved from https://www.undp.org/publications/undp-annual-report-2021
Veugelers, R., & Mrak, M. (2009). The Knowledge Economy and Catching-Up Member States of the European Union. Retrieved from https://archiwum.pte.pl/pliki/2/21/Knowledge%20Economy%2
0and%20Catching-up%20Member%20States1.pdf
Viale, R., & Etzkowitz, H. (Eds.). (2010). The Capitalization of Knowledge: A Triple Helix of University-Industry-Government: Edward Elgar Publishing.
Windrum, P., & Tomlinson, M. (1999). Knowledge-Intensive Services and International Competitiveness: A Four Country Comparison. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, 11(3), 391-408. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/095373299107429
Zeibote, Z., Volkova, T., & Todorov, K. (2019). The Impact of Globalization on Regional Development and Competitiveness: Cases of Selected Regions. Insights into Regional Development, 1(1), 33-47. http://dx.doi.org/10.9770/ird.2019.1.1(3)
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Tatia Zarkua, Mikhail Krivko, Wim Heijman, Irena Benešová

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
All accepted papers are published on an Open Access basis.
The Open Access License is based on the Creative Commons license.
The non-commercial use of the article will be governed by the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License as currently displayed on https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
Under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license, the author(s) and users are free to share (copy, distribute and transmit the contribution) under the following conditions:
1. they must attribute the contribution in the manner specified by the author or licensor,
2. they may not use this contribution for commercial purposes,
3. they may not alter, transform, or build upon this work.


