Title: The development of local innovation systems and firm performance: empirical evidence from the South of Italy

Authors: Marco Ferretti; Eva Panetti; Adele Parmentola

Addresses: Department of Management and Quantitative Studies, Parthenope University of Naples, Via Generale Parisi 13, 80122 Napoli NA, Italy ' Department of Management and Quantitative Studies, Parthenope University of Naples, Via Generale Parisi 13, 80122 Napoli NA, Italy ' Department of Management and Quantitative Studies, Parthenope University of Naples, Via Generale Parisi 13, 80122 Napoli NA, Italy

Abstract: By positioning in the literary stream that considers the performance of local innovation systems (LIS) in terms of their contribution to the regional economic growth and, more specifically to the increase of entrepreneurial capacity, this paper explores the effect of LIS development on firm performance in the particular case of top-down initiatives to promote cooperation among industry and universities in the region of Campania (South of Italy). Main findings show that these initiatives are associated to a greater firm performance in two districts, focused on the Biotechnology and Cultural Heritage respectively, suggesting that the effect of LIS development on firm performance is dependent upon sectorial characteristics such as the knowledge intensity and the level of basic research needed for the conduct of firms' innovation activities as well as their need of recurring to complementary capabilities.

Keywords: local innovation systems; LIS; firm performance; Campania; high-technology districts; Italy; South of Italy; social network analysis; network structure; network centrality.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEBR.2020.104757

International Journal of Economics and Business Research, 2020 Vol.19 No.2, pp.152 - 165

Received: 13 Mar 2019
Accepted: 28 Mar 2019

Published online: 30 Jan 2020 *

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