Tech student Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Long Reads

English

What Makes an Inventor?

, , , 

Economists have long examined the factors determining whether someone becomes an inventor, and they have generally found that the best step aspiring innovators can take is to be born to the right parents. But new research suggests that household income may be masking the influence of other related factors.

PARIS – Who becomes an inventor? Ideally, it would be anyone with a natural talent for innovation. But what if talent in innovation is misallocated, because some potential inventors are deprived of the conditions for success? After all, in addition to natural endowments, much depends on one’s social environment, and not every potential inventor is afforded the same level of education or parental support.

In a recently published study, we set out to answer these and related questions. Specifically, by merging three comprehensive data sets, we were able to see how the income and educational level of one’s parents and one’s own talents can determine whether one becomes an inventor. We then analyzed the interaction between these factors, and concluded that talent in innovation is indeed at risk of being misallocated under certain conditions.

A Privileged Class?

Before we turn to our own findings, consider the following figures, which show the effect of paternal income on the probability that an individual will become an inventor.

We hope you're enjoying Project Syndicate.

To continue reading, subscribe now.

Subscribe

or

Register for FREE to access two premium articles per month.

Register

Support High-Quality Commentary

For more than 25 years, Project Syndicate has been guided by a simple credo: All people deserve access to a broad range of views by the world's foremost leaders and thinkers on the issues, events, and forces shaping their lives. At a time of unprecedented uncertainty, that mission is more important than ever – and we remain committed to fulfilling it.

But there is no doubt that we, like so many other media organizations nowadays, are under growing strain. If you are in a position to support us, please subscribe now.

As a subscriber, you will enjoy unlimited access to our On Point suite of long reads, book reviews, and insider interviews; Big Picture topical collections; Say More contributor interviews; Opinion Has It podcast features; The Year Ahead magazine, the full PS archive, and much more. You will also directly support our mission of delivering the highest-quality commentary on the world's most pressing issues to as wide an audience as possible.

By helping us to build a truly open world of ideas, every PS subscriber makes a real difference. Thank you.

Subscribe Now

https://prosyn.org/sFzOeb5