Urban Hierarchy of Innovation Capability and Inter-city Linkages of Knowledge in Post-reform China

The 2000s has witnessed increasing interests in cities′ role of innovation in the era of knowledge-based economy. Compared
with substantial empirical analysis on the world city hierarchy of innovation, this paper attempts to examine the national urban hierarchy
of innovation capability in China, in terms of ranking systems, spatial pattern and inter-city linkages of knowledge during the post-reform
period since the late 1970s. Based on quantitative analysis such as principal component factor analysis and clustering analysis, this paper
identifies the five-tier hierarchy of innovation, which is headed by Beijing and Shanghai, followed by the capital cities of each province
and regional centre cities. The development of China′s urban hierarchy of innovation capability has been driven by such factors as the
scale of innovation, scientific scale, innovation potential and innovation environment. The paper further investigates the inter-city
linkages of knowledge measured by the number of co-authored papers among the cities. Beijing is positioned in the central position of the
knowledge diffusion and knowledge cooperation innovation. More knowledge diffusion among high level cities has occurred than that
among the low level cities as well as between the low level cities and high level cities, and provincial capital cities and the regional
central cities.