Abstract: Based on the propensity score matching method, an empirical study is made on the average treatment effect of government innovation subsidy to the quantity and quality of patents. It is found that the government innovation subsidy can increase the quantity of invention patent application and the quality of invention patent and utility model patent. In the process of sub-sample heterogeneity analysis, the government innovation subsidy has a more significant effect on the quantity and quality of patents of enterprises whose executives have R&D background, or which are private, capital-intensive or located in the central or eastern areas. Clarifying the incentive mechanism of innovation subsidy can help improve the evaluation system of innovation subsidy and design and implement the policies of innovation subsidy in the process of realizing Chinas transformation from the biggest possessed country to the powerful patent country.

Key words: government innovation subsidy, enterprise innovation, patent quantity, patent quality, treatment effect