Catch-up Industrialization and Growth Trajectory of Science and Technology: A Comparative Study on Asian Economies

As typical emerging economies in the race for acquiring innovation rents, many emerging economies have the urgency to transform their economy in which dependent on export-oriented manufacturing to knowledge-based economy. Many studies highlighted the pathways taken by these economies to achieve development and how distinctive national innovation system contributed to growth and productivity in science and technology. Through theoretical analysis and empirical demonstration, this paper attempts to capture in a stylized the national innovation system strategies in shaping science and technology trajectories for South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and China. The science and technology (proxied by papers and patents) trajectories were examined using bi-logistic growth function. The findings suggests that catch-up governing strategic model of South Korea and Taiwan had led to much longer and higher development trajectories during the transition towards knowledge-based economy than countries that are dependent on FDI for learning and acquiring technology such as Singapore and Malaysia.