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How does the regional institutional environment of China’s transitional economy influence the relationship between a firm’s R&D investment intensity and innovation performance? Based on the resource-based view and institution-based view, an empirical study was executed to identify the moderating effects of institutional environment variables from the Marketization Index of China’s Provinces: National Economic Research Institute (NERI) Report on the relationship between a firm’s R&D investment intensity and innovation performance. This paper aims to study how effectively improve the impact of R&D investment intensity on innovation performance under the influence of the institutional environment.

Against the background of China’s transitional economy, the authors present empirical evidence from panel data covering 374 Chinese A-share listed high-tech manufacturing firms on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchange to examine the relationship between R&D investment intensity and innovation performance.

Empirical results illustrate the following: The R&D investment intensity and innovation performance displayed an inverse U-shaped relationship, and R&D investment intensity had a lagged effect on R&D output according to the uncertainty and industrialization period of R&D activities. The level of financial market development can intensify the effects of R&D investment intensity on innovation performance. The degree of government intervention weakens the effect of R&D investment intensity on innovation performance.

Based on the background of China’s institutional environment during the transition period, combined with previous research and the Marketization Index of China’s Provinces: NERI Report, selecting financial market development, government intervention level and legalization level as moderating variables to study how effectively improve the impact of R&D investment intensity on innovation performance under the influence of the institutional environment. Due to the different ownership of firms during the transition period, the appropriate impact of the institutional environment on the relationship between R&D investment intensity and innovation performance will vary. Moreover, the level of legalization would impact on innovation insignificantly.