Technical change in US industry: A cross-industry analysis

Abstract

The nature of the public policies which have influenced the pace and pattern of technical progress in a number of American industries is studied with the view of assessing the broad effects of these policies. The industries studied are agriculture, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, computers, civil aircraft, automobiles and residential construction. The policies considered include research and development funding as well as government procurement, education, information dissemination, patent protection, licensing, regulations, and anti-trust policies.