Performance evaluation of China's Hi-tech zones in the post financial crisis era - Analysis based on the dynamic network SBM model

•The Dynamic Network SBM to estimate the dynamic trace of the performances of National Hi-tech zones•The technical efficiencies of both production sectors and R&D sectors are low in most Chinese National Hi-tech zones.•The Total Factor Productivity exhibits that production sectors mainly depend on technical efficiency improvement while R&D sectors hinge on technology progress.

This paper evaluates the performance of national HTZs in China after the financial crisis. Unlike previous case studies or comparative analyses, we employ the Dynamic Network Slack-based Measurement to open the “black box” and examine the HTZs as a network that is connected by carry-overs between sequenced terms and links among different sectors. The results show that: 1) the efficiencies of both production sectors and R&D sectors are low in most Hi-tech zones, partly because the links between them are weak and the carry-overs are inappropriate; and 2) Total Factor Productivity exhibits that production sectors mainly depend on technical efficiency improvement, while R&D sectors hinge on technology progress.