The Link Between Research Quality And Technology Transfer In The Italian Evaluation Of Research Quality Vqr 2011-2014

In recent years, the growing interest of Universities in valorization of research activities (technology transfer patenting and licensing- and academic entrepreneurship) has generated a debate on their impact on scientific knowledge production and a large literature has analyzed the determinants of researchers' engagement with firms, at individual and institutional level. Empirical studies have shown that researchers with high scientific performance impact tend to engage more in technology transfer activities: indicators of scientific impact/productivity have a positive relationship with indicators of engagement in transfer activities, both at the individual and institutional levels and through contract research as well as through commercialization (licensing and start-up creation).This paper focuses on the link between research quality and valorization of research activities using data from the Italian Evaluation of Research Quality VQR 2011-2014. The estimation results confirm the existence of a positive correlation at institutional level.