Abstract Based on a sample of listed companies in China during the period 2009 to 2016, this study empirically tests whether corporate innovation activities (both R&D investment and patent output) have social network peer effect, and examines the impact of corporate social network characteristic on peer effect intensity. The results show that corporate innovation is positively affected by the peer firms’ innovation in the social network, and corporate innovation has social network peer effect. After excluding the peer effect in the same region and industry, social network peer effect of corporate innovation still exists significantly. The institutional environment has a negative moderating effect on the social network peer effect of corporate innovation. Corporate innovation activities have a stronger social network peer effect in areas with poor institutional environment. The corporate network centrality is negatively related to the peer difference of R&D investment and patent output, and positively related to the peer effect intensity of corporate innovation.
