The Effect of Credit Shocks on Sustained Team Collaboration in Patenting (Job Market Paper) [Paper] [Poster]
This paper examines the impact of bank failures on team-based innovation, focusing on the persistence of inventor teams under credit supply constraints. Using U.S. patent and FDIC data from 2000 to 2012, we present three main findings. First, we show that bank failures significantly reduce both the number of team patents and the number of inventors with collaborators. Second, we find that negative banking shocks decrease the likelihood that inventor teams remain together for projects in subsequent periods. However, we provide evidence that team-specific factors, including geographic proximity, prior collaboration experience, and smaller team sizes, mitigate the adverse effects of bank failures and help preserve the stability of co-authorship. Our findings suggest that limited capital availability during bank failures can disrupt the continuity in teamwork, but the effects vary across inventor teams. This study offers important and timely policy insights into how credit supply disruptions influence joint production and the stability of teamwork in innovation processes.
Publications
Noh, K. (2025) "Paid Family Leave Policy and Leave-Taking: A Synthetic Control Approach," Applied Economics Letters, 32(9), 1273-1277. [Paper]
This article estimates the effect of California’s Paid Family Leave (CA-PFL) program on young women’s leave-taking. Using the synthetic control method, this study finds that women of childbearing age are more likely to be on leave after the implementation of the policy.
Working Papers
"Bridging Gender Innovation Gap with Paid Family Leave Program," (with Chun-Yu Ho, Gerald R. Marschke, and Won Sung) [Draft available upon request]
This study examines the impacts of California’s 2004 paid family leave (CA-PFL) program on gender disparities in innovation. Using U.S.patent records from 1994 to 2019 and a difference-in-differences approach, we present four key findings. First, CA-PFL program increases the share of patents with female involvement but not the proportion of female inventors, indicating the program bridges the gender gap in patenting activity. Second, event studies show that the effects of CA-PFL expanded over time, consistent with limited early awareness and take-up. Third, the program is more effective for more experienced female inventors, and support their career continuity. Fourth, the program is more effective for private firms, where employer-provided leave benefits are typically less generous. Overall, the results highlight the role of state-mandated PFL program in advancing female representation in the innovation workforce.
Work in Progress
"Paid Family Leave and Mixed-Gender Collaboration in Innovation," (with Chun-Yu Ho and Gerald R. Marschke)
"Patent Families and Novelty: Beyond Filing Dates," (with Gerald R. Marschke)