Surname distance and inter-city collaborative innovation

As a basic factor, cultural differences exert long-term impacts on regional collaborative innovation and knowledge spillovers. This paper estimates the causal effect of surname distance on inter-city collaborative innovation in China. The findings indicate that greater surname distance significantly impedes collaborative innovation between cities over time. These conclusions remain robust even when core explanatory variables are substituted, geographical distance is controlled for, and are particularly pronounced in interprovincial collaborations. Notably, surname distance exerts its most substantial inhibitory effect on collaborative innovation between large and small cities, as well as in partnerships involving industry-university collaboration and top-tier universities. Mechanistic analysis suggests that the increase in surname distance may hinder innovation activities through two principal pathways: it reduces inter-regional communication and exacerbates the trust gap between regions. Further analysis reveals that as surname distance increases, both the quality and foundational aspects of interurban collaborative innovation deteriorate.