Lucy Wang, 2023 PEP Fellow, Finds Drug Companies are More Likely to Keep Research and Development In-House to Avoid Competing With Themselves

Lucy Wang was a co-author of the paper published in the American Economic Journal: Microeconomics that “argue[s] that common explanations for why companies choose to outsource, such as cutting costs and access to specialized expertise, don’t tell the whole story. A bigger factor, the study suggests, is how a firm's own patent portfolio shapes the decision. While focused on pharmaceuticals, the researchers say the findings could apply to other industries where companies must carefully balance innovation with protecting existing products."

4/29/26 

UMass News