In 1989, an estimated 950,000 scientists and engineers were employed on a full-time-equivalent (FTE) basis in R& D in the United States. Approximately three-fourths of these R& D professionals were employed by industrial firms, roughly 18 percent by academic institutions, and 6 percent by federal agencies (SRS 1992b, pp. 29 and 63). (See appendix table 3-3.) The rate of increase in R& D spending in the United States slowed after 1985 (see chapter 4, "National R& D Spending Patterns.") The average annual rate of increase in inflation-adjusted national R& D expenditures was 1.9 percent between 1985 and 1989, compared to 6.6 percent between 1980 and 1985. There was a corresponding slowdown in the rate of increase in R& D S& E employment during this period, with the average annual rate dropping from 5.3 percent during the first half of the decade to 3.1 percent between 1985 and 1989.

Although R& D scientists and engineers comprise less than 1 percent of the U.S. labor force, the rate of growth in the number of these professionals has been exceeding that for the entire U.S. labor force. As a result, the R& D S& E proportion of the U.S. labor force has been increasing steadily since the mid-1970s--from 55 R& D scientists and engineers per 10,000 labor force population in 1976 to 76 in 1989. (See figure 3-17.)

Industry's employment of R& D scientists and engineers declined in the early 1990s--from 730,000 in January 1990 to 684,000 in January 1992 (SRS forthcoming [b]). Defense downsizing appears to be causing a reduction in the number of industrial scientists and engineers assigned to government R& D contracts. (See "The Impact of Defense Downsizing on Technical Employment.")

Nearly half the doctoral scientists and engineers employed by industrial firms, and over a third of those employed by academic institutions, were primarily engaged in the conduct of research and development in 1991. (See appendix table 3-4.) In industry, most R& D scientists with doctoral degrees work in applied research; most R& D engineers are assigned to development activities. In academia, most doctorate-holding scientists primarily engaged in R& D are working on basic research projects; most engineers are involved in applied research. (See figure 3-6.)

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