Lack of economic freedom and innovation: Patent activities in the “Third Reich” and in the GDR

• Applicants: Dr. Alexander Donges; Professor Dr. Jochen Streb
• Subject Area: Economic and Social History
• Term: since 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 456726585

The aim of this project is to find out whether the changes in patent law and economic policy in the “Third Reich” and in the GDR influenced the innovation activities of companies and inventors and led to lasting changes in the economic geography and the industrial or technological focus of innovations in Germany. In order to realize this objective, the first step is to identify the special features of patent law and administrative practice in the two regimes. In a second step, patent data sets will be created and analyzed for the periods of the “Third Reich” and the GDR respectively. These data sets will contain information on the patent holders (in particular the place of residence or company location) as well as the technology class of the respective patents. In a third step, an empirical analysis spanning the various political systems of 20th-century Germany will be carried out in order to identify and explain continuities and discontinuities in the spatial and technological distribution of patents. We especially focus on the East-West shift of innovative companies in the course of the German division, which we understand as a “natural experiment” to test whether innovative ability is more organisation- or location-bound.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants