UNU-MERIT Working Papers Series
Research joint ventures in an R&D driven market with evolving consumer preferences: An evolutionary multi-agent based modelling approach
Salih Cevikarslan #2015-007R&D collaborations have increasingly attracted the attention of both
academic and business circles in the last couple of decades. Several
empirical studies have concentrated on the firms' incentives to
participate in these collaborations. This paper presents an alternative
approach to R&D collaborations using an evolutionary, multi-agent based
and sector-level R&D model. The model will firstly be used to simulate
the evolution of an R&D driven market composed of profit-driven firms
and boundedly rational consumers. Next, frequently discussed research
questions in the relevant empirical literature will be explored. This
modelling exercise will extend beyond a basic confirmation/rejection of
these research questions by showing that the way a firm is defined as an
R&D collaborator has a significant effect on research results.
Keywords: R&D collaboration; industrial dynamics; agent-based modelling
JEL Classification: B52, L11, O31
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