In a new report,* NIST senior economist Gregory Tassey strives to leverage that experience by describing the major steps required for designing, implementing, analyzing and disseminating economic studies of government R&D programs. While he says there probably will never be a single "manual" for such studies, he outlines methods common to all economic assessments and offers advice for selecting analysis and data collection methods.
The report notes that timing of a study and selection of the right "metrics" for program outcomes are critical to the design of economic assessments. A study that estimates the benefits of government technology infrastructure should be conducted about three to 10 years after significant marketplace impact. This ensures that enough time has passed for the new technology to be disseminated widely, without losing valuable sources of impact data. Metrics vary widely but typically are similar to those used in corporate finance and include impacts on productivity, quality and reliability that affect R&D, production and commercialization of a technology.
Ultimately, writes Tassey, economic assessments should be "an ongoing function" that R&D agencies use as a reality check on whether programs targeted at specific technologies or industries actually produce the expected economic benefits and conform to the agency's mission.
*Gregory Tassey, Methods for Assessing the Economic Impact of Government R&D, (Planning Report 03-1).