以往研究多針對併購與創新績效之關聯，而著重於併購雙方的研究費用投入或單方面分析專利產出，鮮少同時分析投入與產出雙方面的關聯。但僅憑單一面卻無法對公司創新作全面衡量，以台積電為例，其對於重要製程多以營業秘密加以保護而非只透過專利，故僅以專利來衡量創新績效尤顯不足。然而，研發費用的投入卻又不全然反映在新績效上，故本文希望透過同時分析投入面與產出面而能對公司之創新績效有更全面的解讀。
此外，過往研究有針對併購雙方的技術重疊度、市場集中度、跨境併購、敵意併購等因素進一步分析其對於併購後創新績效之影響，卻鮮少分析併購當時舉債程度對併購後創新績效之影響，依據自由現金流理論(FCF theory)，當企業舉債，公司現金流會受到外部債權人監督與限制，降低經理人之代理問題而能有較好的投資績效，亦有文獻提及併購當時舉債的程度越高會對資金使用造成排擠效果，從而降低併購後創新績效，過往文獻未有一致結論，故本文進一步研究舉債程度對於併購後創新績效之影響。
本文藉由觀察2008到2013間曾經參與併購的台灣電子業，衡量創新績效的投入與產出，發現併購後三年內企業之研發費用投入與專利產出等指標都有下降的趨勢，然而當併購公司於併購當年有較高的財務槓桿程度，則併購後雖然研發費用的投入仍然呈現下降趨勢，卻能有較高的創新績效產出，符合自由現金流假說，表示企業在併購當時舉債程度越高，在受到外部監督與內部現金流受限的條件下，能降低代理成本，從而將資源投入較有效率的研發活動，造就低研發、高產出的結果。

We collect our innovation-merger data to analyze the relationship between innovation performance and M&A event, and we also further examine the effect of a merger on future innovation output when there is debt issue between merging firms.
Using 116 M&A observations of Taiwan electronic companies from 2008 to 2013, we find that electronic industry in Taiwan would reduce both of input and output of innovation in the subsequent three years after M&A. In our second hypothesis, we find that if the company issue debt or borrow money from bank during the period of M&A event, the output of innovation is proportional to the debt ratio, whereas the input of innovation still decline dramatically.

Ferreira, D., Manso, G., & Silva, A. C. (2012). Incentives to innovate and the decision to go public or private. The Review of Financial Studies, 27(1), 256-300.
Hall, B. H., & Lerner, J. (2010). The financing of R&D and innovation. In Handbook of the Economics of Innovation (Vol. 1, pp. 609-639). North-Holland.
Zantout, (1997). A test of the debt‐monitoring hypothesis: The case of corporate R&D expenditures. Financial Review, 32(1), 21-48.
Bronwyn H. Hall and Josh Lerner, Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, Elsevier-North Holland, 2009, The Financing of R&D and Innovation
Bena, J., & Li, K. (2014). Corporate innovations and mergers and acquisitions. The Journal of Finance, 69(5), 1923-1960.
Barak Richman, Will Mitchell, Elena Vidal, & Kevin Schulman, Loyola University Chicago Law Journal,2017,Pharmaceutical M&A Activity: Effects on Prices, Innovation, and Competition
Higgins, M. J., & Rodriguez, D. (2006). The outsourcing of R&D through acquisitions in the pharmaceutical industry. Journal of financial economics, 80(2), 351-383.
William F. Long and David J. Ravenscraft, Strategic Management Journal,1993,LBOs, Debt and R&D Intensity
Bronwyn H. Hall, Adam Jaffe and Manuel Trajtenberg, The RAND Journal of Economics, Vol. 36, No. 1, 2005, Market Value and Patent Citations
Cassiman, B., Colombo, M. G., Garrone, P., & Veugelers, R. (2005). The impact of M&A on the R&D process: An empirical analysis of the role of technological-and market-relatedness. Research Policy, 34(2), 195-220.
Bertrand, O., & Zuniga, P. (2006). R&D and M&A: Are cross-border M&A different? An investigation on OECD countries. International Journal of Industrial Organization, 24(2), 401-423.
Takechi, K. (2011). R&D intensity and domestic and cross-border M&A of Japanese firms before domestic M&A deregulation. Japan and the World Economy, 23(2), 112-118.
Ruffolo, R. R. (2006). Why has R&D productivity declined in the pharmaceutical industry?. Expert opinion on drug discovery, 1(2), 99-102.
Szücs, F. (2014). M&A and R&D: Asymmetric effects on acquirers and targets?. Research Policy, 43(7), 1264-1273.
Miyazaki, H. (2009). An analysis of the relation between R&D and M&A in high-tech industries. Applied Economics Letters, 16(2), 199-201.
Ho, Y. K., Tjahjapranata, M., & Yap, C. M. (2006). Size, leverage, concentration, and R&D investment in generating growth opportunities. The Journal of Business, 79(2), 851-876.
Miller, R. R. (1990). Do mergers and acquisitions hurt R&D?. Research-Technology Management, 33(2), 11-15.
Sears, J., & Hoetker, G. (2014). Technological overlap, technological capabilities, and resource recombination in technological acquisitions. Strategic Management Journal, 35(1), 48-67.
Brown, J. R., Martinsson, G., & Petersen, B. C. (2012). Do financing constraints matter for R&D?. European Economic Review, 56(8), 1512-1529.
Wies, S., & Moorman, C. (2015). Going public: how stock market listing changes firm innovation behavior. Journal of Marketing Research, 52(5), 694-709.
Cornaggia, J., Mao, Y., Tian, X., & Wolfe, B. (2015). Does banking competition affect innovation?. Journal of financial economics, 115(1), 189-209.
Atanassov, J. (2013). Do hostile takeovers stifle innovation? Evidence from antitakeover legislation and corporate patenting. The Journal of Finance, 68(3), 1097-1131.
Long, W. F., & Ravenscraft, D. J. (1993). LBOs, debt and R&D intensity. Strategic management journal, 14(S1), 119-135.
Kavanagh, M. H., & Ashkanasy, N. M. (2006). The impact of leadership and change management strategy on organizational culture and individual acceptance of change during a merger. British Journal of Management, 17(S1).
Feyzrakhmanova, M., & Gurdgiev, C. (2016). Patents and R&D expenditure effects on equity returns in pharmaceutical industry. Applied Economics Letters, 23(4), 278-283.
Valentini, Giovanni. "Measuring the effect of M&A on patenting quantity and quality." Strategic Management Journal 33.3 (2012): 336-346.