The relationship between patents and economic growth: A Panel VAR and causality analyses on OECD countries

The patent subject requires a comprehensive analysis both theoretically and empirically as it is related to many concepts. Patenting is important not only for the patent owner, but also for society and the country. Over the years, the causes of economic growth have been put forward in various ways in different growth models. Sustainable economic growth can be achieved by the creation of innovation by industries that carry out R&D activities and the continuous feeding of innovation with R&D, according to R&D-based endogenous growth models. The innovation process is depicted as a cumulative one in which new innovations build on past achievements. Empirical evidence demonstrates that patents, as a form of intellectual property rights contribute to economic growth. Especially in knowledge-based new economies, patents play a essential role in the decisions of countries and companies to invest in innovation. This study first theoretically reviews the economic effects of patent and patent system. For this purpose, it explains the impact of patents on economic growth, starting from their role as an innovation indicator and considering the main benefits of the patent system. The study then empirically investigates the relationship between patents and economic growth for a panel of OECD countries between 1990 and 2019. By employing panel vector autoregression (VAR) approach and panel-VAR Granger causality analysis, the research distinguishes patents into patent applications and grants. According to the findings of the Granger causality analysis, there is no two-way causality relationship between patents and economic growth, but there is a causality relationship from patents to economic growth. The findings from the empirical estimates confirm a significant contribution of patents to economic growth in OECD countries. The empirical results show that an improvement in patent grants play a decisive role rather than patent applications in enchancing gross domestic product. Keywords: Patents, Innovation, Economic Growth, Panel VAR and Granger Causality Analysis