  Research and development (R&D) of countries play a major role in a long-term
development of the economy. We measure the R&D efficiency of all 28 member
countries of the European Union in the years 2008--2014. Super-efficient data
envelopment analysis (DEA) based on robustness of classification into efficient
and inefficient units is adopted. We use the number of citations as output of
basic research, the number of patents as output of applied research and R&D
expenditures with manpower as inputs. To meet DEA assumptions and to capture
R&D characteristics, we analyze a homogeneous sample of countries, adjust
prices using purchasing power parity and consider time lag between inputs and
outputs. We find that the efficiency of general R&D is higher for countries
with higher GDP per capita. This relation also holds for specialized
efficiencies of basic and applied research. However, it is much stronger for
applied research suggesting its outputs are more easily distinguished and
captured. Our findings are important in the evaluation of research and policy
making.
