Risk-Mitigating Technologies: the Case of Radiation Diagnostic Devices / Alberto Galasso, Hong Luo.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Galasso, Alberto.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Luo, Hong.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w26305.

NBER working paper series no. w26305

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Other Title:

Risk-Mitigating Technologies

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2019.

Summary:

We study the impact of consumers' risk perception on firm innovation. Our analysis exploits a major surge in the perceived risk of radiation diagnostic devices, following extensive media coverage of a set of over-radiation accidents involving CT scanners in late 2009. Difference-in-differences regressions using data on patents and FDA product clearances show that the increased perception of radiation risk spurred the development of new technologies that mitigated such risk and led to a greater number of new products. We provide qualitative evidence and describe patterns of equipment usage and upgrade that are consistent with this mechanism. Our analysis suggests that changes in risk perception can be an important driver of innovation and can shape the direction of technological progress.

Notes:

Print version record

September 2019.