ДИНАМИКА РАЗВИТИЯ ИННОВАЦИОННОЙ СФЕРЫ РЕГИОНОВ ЦЕНТРАЛЬНОГО ФЕДЕРАЛЬНОГО ОКРУГА: АНАЛИЗ ДИФФЕРЕНЦИАЦИИ

Abstract:
The article is devoted to the problem of identifying the spatial differentiation of innovative development of regions in the context of the growth of average indicators of innovation activity. The average positive dynamics may conceal a stable polarization of territories, which requires the use of special methodological tools to assess inter-regional differences. The purpose of the study is to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the dynamics and interregional differentiation of the innovation sphere of the subjects of the Central Federal District. The hypothesis suggests that the positive dynamics of averages is accompanied by continued polarization, while the composition of the groups of leaders and outsiders is relatively stable. The scientific novelty consists in combining the analysis of averaged indicators for three blocks with the calculation of fund and oscillation coefficients, as well as the typological grouping of regions based on the quartile method. The methodological basis was a statistical analysis of official data from Rosstat and the National Research University HSE for the period from 2010 to 2024 inclusive. The empirical results verified the hypothesis: the growth of innovation activity in the process and performance blocks did not lead to regional convergence. Moderate stability of the innovation space was revealed: half of the subjects retained their positions (leaders — Moscow, Moscow region; outsiders — Kostroma, Kursk regions), however, structural mobility of territories was also recorded, expressed in the transition of a number of regions between groups. The practical significance is determined by the possibility of using the results to develop a differentiated regional policy that prevents increased inequality, takes into account the real trajectories of territorial development and allows for targeted government support measures.