THE COSTS OF COMPETITIVENESS: A REMINDER.

The issue of U.S. scientific and technological competitiveness has once again gained the attention of policy makers and of the general public. One can hardly pick up a business or trade journal, or listen to a televised report on the economy that does not talk about some new foreign technological innovation or scientific breakthrough that is seen to reflect U.S.' productive decline in the international economy. When competitiveness is overemphasized in scientific and technological activities, it can lead to problems both in the scientific development of knowledge and in the ability to compete economically. This article serves as a reminder that emphasizing competitiveness as a motivational force in scientific and technological development entails both direct and indirect costs.