INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH-AND-DEVELOPMENT SPILLOVERS, HUMAN-CAPITAL AND PRODUCTIVITY IN OECD ECONOMIES - AN EMPIRICAL-INVESTIGATION

This paper extends Coe and Helpman's (International R&D spillovers, Eu ropean Economic Review, 39, 859-887, 1995) study of international R&D spillovers amongst OECD countries by including a general human capital variable which accounts for innovation outside the R&D sector and oth er aspects of human capital not captured by formal R&D. This results i n somewhat smaller coefficient estimates for domestic R&D capital and international R&D spillovers, but they remain highly statistically sig nificant. General human capital is found to affect TFP directly as a f actor of production, and as a vehicle for international knowledge tran sfer associated with productivity catch-up amongst OECD countries. It seems to play a distinct role from R&D in th; economic growth processe s of these economies.