Technological capabilities and patterns of income convergence in Europe: A cluster analysis

Abstract

This paper analyses the patterns of convergence across the European Union countries in terms of both economic growth and technological conditions during the period 1995-2013. We apply the methodology of Phillips-Sul (2007) to study convergence in real income per capita and countries’ technological capabilities. We consider separately eight technological indicators as proxies for a country’s innovative ability and absorptive capacity. The results support the club convergence hypothesis for income and some technology-related indicators and offer an approximation to the role that technological capabilities could play in the income convergence process.