Data quality, concepts and methodology: How to read the gross domestic expenditures on research and development (GERD) matrix
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Introduction to GERD terminology - Research and development expenditures in Canada are estimated annually by type of sector, by sources of funds and by science type using a series of surveys supplemented by modelling:
- Type of sector – Research and development (R&D) expenditures can be spent by organizations within six sectors in Canada: federal government organizations; provincial government organizations; provincial research organizations; business enterprises; higher education organizations (including universities and affiliated teaching hospitals); and private non-profit organizations.
- Sources of funds – Intramural research and development (R&D) expenditures are spent within organizations performing the R&D. The organizations can fund their own R&D or undertake R&D on behalf of other organizations. The R&D performing organizations indicate the source of funds, by sector, for their intramural R&D expenditures. In the GERD matrix, the source of funds data are shown by funding sector.
- Science type – Research and development (R&D) expenditures are spent by organizations performing in either the natural sciences and engineering or the social sciences and humanities. Only intramural R&D expenditures in the natural sciences and engineering for the provincial research organisations and business enterprises are included in the GERD.
Organizations of any type can perform and/or fund R&D at any time. GERD data include intramural R&D expenditures only. Therefore, the payments of organisations for R&D performed by other organisations, or extramural R&D expenditures, are not included.
Definition of GERD - Gross domestic expenditures on Research and Development (GERD) is the total value of intramural research and development expenditures (R&D) of all organizations in performing sectors. As there are two dimensions to the reporting of R&D expenditures (by performing sector and by funding sector) the data are presented in a matrix. GERD data are based on the source of funds provided by the performing sector.
Tabular results - The table below contains total R&D expenditures for each of the performing sectors' columns (federal government, provincial governments, provincial research organizations, business enterprises, higher education and private non-profit organizations).
Each of the performing sectors indicates the funding sectors for their intramural R&D expenditures. This is an important distinction because it explains the financial sources of performers' R&D activities. The funding sectors include all of the performing sectors and foreign sources of funds.
Data sources used to populate the tabular results - Federal government intramural R&D expenditures are estimated by the annual Federal Science Expenditure and Personnel survey. Intramural R&D expenditures represent spending on R&D performed by federal departments and agencies. As the GERD matrices within the publication indicate, federal departments and agencies receive funding for intramural R&D performance from provincial governments and from the business enterprise sector.
The provincial governments' intramural R&D expenditures are derived from annual provincial surveys of scientific activities. The surveys are conducted on a cost-shared basis, and are collected under the authority of the provincial governments, which means each province can choose when to participate. Survey-based expenditures for the most recent reference year are available for the following provinces: Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia. The provincial government of Quebec conducts a survey of its intramural R&D activities which it shares with Statistics Canada to construct the GERD matrix.
The annual survey of the Research and Development Activities of Provincial Research Organizations is the source of expenditure data displayed in the column for provincial research organizations.
The annual survey of Research and Development in Canadian Industry is the source of the business enterprise sector's R&D expenditure data.
An estimation model is used to populate R&D intramural expenditures for the higher education sector.
The annual survey of Research and Development in Private Non-Profit Organizations provides national R&D expenditure data for this sector.
Reference documents - Users interested in total R&D spending for a sector such as the federal government are referred to the intramural and extramural R&D spending published in Science Statistics (88-001-X), and Federal Scientific Activities (88-204-X).
Tabulation notes - Funding sector R&D expenditures shown in the GERD matrix do not equal extramural R&D spending of individual funding sectors for a number of reasons including: differences in financial years of the organisations funding the R&D and the organisations performing the R&D; the time it takes to perform the R&D; organisations sub-contracting parts of the R&D work to organisations in other sectors; payments for work that is related to the R&D but not part of the contracted R&D; differences in the costs of performing the R&D and the payments for the R&D work; and R&D performing organisations not indicating accurately their sources of funds by funding sector.
GERD data are presented separately for total sciences, for natural sciences and engineering, and for social sciences and humanities. Total sciences is the sum of natural sciences and engineering and social sciences and humanities. Only natural sciences and engineering data are collected and published for the business enterprise sector and provincial research organizations.
GERD data presented in these matrix tables are used to compare Canada's R&D performance internationally. They are assembled based on guidelines presented in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's Frascati Manual (2002). For a graphical representation similar to the one shown below, see page 122 of the manual.
This table is for reference purposes only.
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