A United Nations report on Asian higher education has questioned the widely held belief among policymakers that investment in university research leads to economic growth.
The study, which looked at Malaysia and Thailand in particular, found that in those countries “very little” research could be commercialized, and even when it is, it “does not yield large financial payoffs.”
The report also suggests that the two nations may be spending on research largely to push themselves up world university rankings, which would mean that research has only “symbolic” value.
To read the original article: Study questions whether some countries see much payoff from research efforts @insidehighered
