Innovation indicators in Brazil and investment decisions in public policies

Abstract

Managing the innovation process requires reliable metrics, which are constructed through a set of indicators that estimate the level of innovation in a region or sector. Based on the scientific literature that addresses these topics, this research aims to identify which Brazilian indicators in the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2020 are priorities when deciding on investments in public policies. Three models were developed: i) in the first one, the multiple linear regression technique was used to directly relate the GII scores to the 80 indicators that form it; ii) in the second one, factor analysis was used to first associate the GII formation indicators with factors that were related to them in a similar way and then estimate the relationship between them and the GII; and iii) in the third one, the multiple linear regression technique was used, however, by replacing the dependent variable (GII) by the average of the countries’ placements in the Global Competitiveness Index and the Global Talent Competitive Index – that average is called the World Innovation Index. Considering the multiple linear function with the dependent variable IMI, only 11 variables had an impact on the GII. Therefore, among the 80 variables, only these 11 ones would have priority in receiving investments from the public sector with the aim of improving Brazilian innovation on the world stage.