Assessing the different types of policy instruments and policy mix for commercialisation of university technologies

Assessing the effectiveness of different types of policy instruments (Direct Funding Support, National Technology Transfer Demonstration Institutions, and University Science Parks) and their mix on commercialisation performance of universities’ technologies is an important but unsolved issue. Using province-level data from 2009–2016, we conduct such empirical research and assess their effectiveness. The results show that different policy instruments have different effects on commercialisation performance, and there are significant synergies between Direct Funding Support and other two policy instruments. Taking account of regional heterogeneity, this study finds that policy mixes are implemented better in regions with high innovation capacity. These findings, in turn, have notable implications for policymakers and university researchers who aim to commercialise their technologies.