Knowledge spillovers and economic performance of firms located in depressed areas: does geographical proximity matter?

Knowledge is defined by several authors, in line with Polanyi (1958), as a learning process that involves cognitive structures and the assimilation of different types of information. A new concept emerges from the diffusion of knowledge: knowledge spillovers, which correspond to a transmission mechanism by which firms benefit from the knowledge produced by other organizations (Sena, 2004). Specifically, knowledge spillovers enable firms to use a greater range of external knowledge, which influences their ability to innovate (Webster, 2004; Yang et al., 2010; LeSage and Fischer, 2012; Song, 2015).