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This paper assesses Brazil's real convergence (1822-2019) through unit root tests and Markov Regime-Switching (MS) models in three different scenarios: towards (i) other six Latin American countries (LA6); (ii) Portugal; and (iii) the technological frontier country, the US. The extended unit root test results favour Brazil's very long-run real convergence towards LA6 and Portugal, but not the US. The estimated MS models, involving two different regimes, real convergence and real non-convergence/divergence, capture institutional quality's positive effect in promoting Brazil's real convergence.

Abstract
The literature on the impact of research output (RO) on economic growth (EG) has been rapidly expanding. However, the single growth processes of technological laggard countries and the mediating roles of human capital (HC) and structural change have been overlooked. Based on cointegration analyses and Granger causality tests over 40 years (1980-2019) for Portugal, five results are worth highlighting: (1) in the short run, RO is critical to promote EG; (2) the long run relation between RO and EG is more complex, being positive and significant in the case of global and research fields that resemble capital goods (Life, Physical, Engineering & Technology, and Social Sciences), and negative in the case of research fields that resemble final goods (Clinical & Pre-Clinical Health, and Arts & Humanities); (3) existence of important short run mismatches between HC and scientific production, with the former mitigating the positive impact of the latter on EG; (4) in the long run, such mismatches are only apparent for 'general' HC (years of schooling of the population 25 + years), with the positive association between RO and EG being enhanced by increases in 'specialized' HC (number of R&D researchers); (5) structural change processes favouring industry amplify the positive (long-run) association and (short-run) impact of RO on EG. Such results robustly suggest that even in technologically laggard contexts, scientific production is critical for economic growth, especially when aligned with changes in sectoral composition that favour industry.

Abstract
Este estudo testa a multidimensionalidade de Universidade Empreendedora (UE) e visa aferir o respetivo contributo para a competitividade regional. Com base em 619 respostas de estudantes, professores e outros colaboradores de dez universidades públicas portuguesas, foi efetuada uma análise fatorial confirmatória e uma estimação de regressão linear múltipla. O construto da UE é confirmado, comprovando a adequação das escalas para o contexto destas universidades. Os resultados mostram que os cinco fatores associados à UE - processos internos, medidas de apoio ao empreendedorismo, colaboração internacional, estratégia de financiamento e estrutura organizacional - contribuem positivamente para a perceção de competitividade regional, acentuando a função das universidades públicas enquanto polos de transferência de conhecimento dinamizadores da competitividade regional.

Abstract
Within the framework of the entrepreneurial university (EU), this study aims to test its multidimensional domain and therefore to confirm the positive contribution of EU factors to perceived regional competitiveness in Portugal. Data were collected from ten Portuguese public universities (PPUs) through a self-employed questionnaire. First- and second-order confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were performed through factor and multiple linear regression analyses. The proposed EU construct was confirmed, thus proving the adequacy of scales for the PPUs context. Overall, the main findings show that EU factors—‘internal processes’, ‘entrepreneurial supporting measures’, ‘international collaboration’, and ‘funding strategy’—make a positive contribution to the perception of regional competitiveness. ‘Entrepreneurial supporting measures’ is the EU factor which has the biggest impact on perceived regional competitiveness and ‘organisational design’ is the only EU factor that does not reveal any impact on it. This contribution demonstrates to policy makers that PPUs are not merely cost centres but knowledge spillovers that can have a positive influence on regional competitiveness. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.