Scientific innovation and technology are at the core of long-term economic health, so how do the United States and other developed nations compare with each other and with the fast-growing economies in Russia, China, India, and Brazil? And what has been the impact of the current financial crisis on investment in innovation?

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), an international organization offering economic and social data, released last month the OECD Science, Technology, and Industry Scorecard to examine recent developments in innovation, science, technology, and globalization. The report compares characteristics of OECD member countries, which include the developed economies in North America and Europe as well as Japan, with major non-member economies in areas such as foreign direct investment, research and development (R&D) intensity, patents, scientific authorship, and the level of advanced students.

The OECD report points to several current economic factors that will temper the level of innovation. The business-enterprise sector is the main source of R&D funding in the majority of OECD countries, accounting for approximately two-thirds of the total in 2007. In line with historical trends, the report expects decreases in business-financed R&D as a result of the current economic downturn. The report also points to a decline in foreign direct investment (FDI) in the G7 countries (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom, and the United States). FDI inflows to G7 countries dropped 25% in 2008, a pattern that continued in the first quarter of 2009 for most countries. A decline in FDI typically shows a decline in innovation in the host country, according to the OECD report.

In addition to assessing the impact of current economic conditions on innovation, the report points to broader trends, namely the increased collaborative and global nature of research. The report shows that the mode of production of scientific knowledge has shifted from individuals to groups, from single to multiple institutions, and from the national to the international level. On average, more than 15% of the patents filed by an OECD country between 2004 and 2006 under the Patent Co-operation Treaty concerned inventions made abroad. Similarly the share of inventions owned by another country accounted for just below 15% of all OECD filings. Some country-specific data of note include that in Belgium, Chinese Taipei (i.e.,Taiwan), and Switzerland, more than 40% of the patents filed in the mid-2000s resulted from collaboration with at least one inventor from abroad. For France, Germany, Sweden, the UK, and the US, between 11% and 24% of the patents in 2004–2006 involved international cooperation.

International co-authorship is also increasing. In 2007, 21.9% of scientific articles involved international co-authorship, a level three times higher than in 1985. The OECD countries dominate publication of scientific authors, accounting for more than 80% of the articles in science and engineering.

The level of doctoral students is also an important barometer of innovation. The EU awarded half of the total OECD degrees in 2006, the US awarded 28%. Despite declining levels of science and engineering doctorates overall, 40% of OECD doctoral graduates are in scientific fields. Emerging economies are also rising in importance. In 2006, Brazil, China, Russia, and India, combined, trained half as many doctoral graduates as OECD countries taken together. Although graduation rates are lower than outside the OECD area, Brazil and Russia awarded more doctorates per inhabitant than the OECD average, according to the report.

So what is the take-away from all these statistics? The fundamentals of long-term economic health reside in continued investment in science and technology and the ability to foster collaborative educational and business models to realize growth in innovation. Something we all probably know, but certainly important enough to be reminded of once again.