The European paradox is the perceived failure of European countries to translate scientific advances into marketable innovations.[1][2] The term was coined in a European Commission Green Paper in 1995.[3] Recently, several articles questioned both the theoretical interpretation upon which the paradox conjecture is based and its empirical underpinnings.[4]
The phenomenon of having a well-educated workforce with strong academia, while trailing in commercialization of technology is also frequently bemoaned in Australia. There the cause is frequently attributed to high taxation, low government industry support and general anti-intellectualism. A key difference is population size, as Australia is constrained by a very small domestic market, while Europe is not.
... the research policy paradigm was already well embedded in a competitiveness/innovation oriented understanding and an understanding of the so-called European paradox, that is, the conjecture that EU member states play a leading global role in terms of top-level scientific output, but lag behind in the ability of converting this strength into wealth-generating innovations.