Comparative Analysis of OECD Countries in Terms of Basic Science and Technology Indicators Using Entropy and WASPAS Methods

Practical analysis of the policies implemented by countries successful in the field of science and technology is crucial, especially in the context of optimal policy selection for countries needing technological development. In this context, ranking the world's countries in terms of technological development is important for increasing the effectiveness of the policies to be implemented in this field. This study ranks 28 OECD countries on seven key science and technology indicators in 2022 using multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) methods. In the analysis, first, the importance of the variables was ranked based on the entropy method. Then, a ranking was made among the selected countries in terms of technological performance using the weighted aggregated sum product assessment (WASPAS) method. The findings obtained with the WASPAS method were confirmed with the additive ratio assessment (ARAS) method. Among the identified variables, the export market (share of computer, electronics and optics sector) parameter was selected as the most dominant criterion. Korea, Germany, Japan, France and the Netherlands were determined to be the best performing in terms of basic science and technology indicators. On the other hand, it can be said that Chile, Latvia, Luxembourg and Lithuania need more effective policies in terms of technology and innovation indicators. In this context, it can be suggested that the policies implemented by countries at the forefront in technological development should be a guide for other countries.