Proposal to measure Regional Innovation Systems in Europe: use of Synthetic Variables

Abstract

This paper presents a novel methodology for configuring regional innovation systems (RIS) in Europe. Unlike more traditional works that use many highly correlated individual variables, from 35 variables that reflect different aspects of the regional innovative activity, and using the statistical technique of factorial analysis, these are reduced to seven compound or synthetic variables, each one representing key aspects or subsystems of innovation systems. This holistic and objective technique, in turn, allows a series of applications that can provide national and regional scientific and technological policy makers the possibility of visualizing the high heterogeneity of regional systems in terms of the allocation of resources for innovative activities, the organization of such activities and the scientific and technological products resulting from such innovative activities and efforts.