Science Parks and the Co-location of High-tech Small- and Medium-sized Firms in China’s Shenzhen

Abstract

Science parks (SPs) have received special attention as a policy tool to facilitate localised economic growth by attracting high-tech firms, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The effectiveness of this strategy has been called into question. Empirical studies suggest that the benefits of SPs for high-tech firms are limited. While this debate is mainly concentrated in the US and Europe, this paper sheds light on the role of SPs in China. It is found that, despite the presence of alternatives, the locations of high-tech SMEs in the region of Shenzhen are determined by hierarchically structured and governed SPs. This finding supports the notion that SPs can play a positive role in attracting high-tech SMEs. Moreover, these effects occur in the relatively unexplored Chinese context of increasingly liberalised but governed market circumstances, where a mature innovation system is still lacking.