Resumen: The long-run relationship between R&D; and regional knowledge: the case of France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Regional Studies. This paper incorporates time dependence into a regional knowledge-production function framework. Within this setup, the long-run dynamic behaviour of research and development (R&D;) and knowledge is analysed in four European countries – France, Germany, Italy and Spain – using unit-root tests and co-integration techniques. We find that the regional stock of knowledge is co-integrated with R&D; employment and external knowledge. Nonetheless, knowledge spillovers play a more important role in the generation and accumulation of new ideas. This suggests that innovation policies should aim at enhancing knowledge diffusion and regional absorptive capacity. Idioma: Inglés DOI: 10.1080/00343404.2017.1360476 Año: 2017 Publicado en: Regional Studies 52, 5 (2017), 619 - 631 ISSN: 0034-3404 Factor impacto JCR: 3.147 (2017) Categ. JCR: ECONOMICS rank: 36 / 353 = 0.102 (2017) - Q1 - T1 Categ. JCR: GEOGRAPHY rank: 12 / 83 = 0.145 (2017) - Q1 - T1 Categ. JCR: ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES rank: 26 / 108 = 0.241 (2017) - Q1 - T1 Factor impacto SCIMAGO: 2.087 - Social Sciences (miscellaneous) (Q1) - Environmental Science (miscellaneous) (Q1)