In recent years, the business sector is playing an increasing role in the scene of both national and European public policies and plans in science and technology. However, this fact contrasts with a scenario where different experts and studies detected the so-called 'researchmarket gap' and 'European paradox', which define a reduced participation of the business sector in funding and carrying out R&D&i, particularly in the collaboration with the public sector, and a lack of strategies for the appropriation by companies of the knowledge produced by universities and public research centers. A large variety of sources support this scenario with quantitative data. In particular, data resulting from economic approaches aimed to measure the amount of money companies invest in R&D&i, the number of contacts with universities or the number of registered patents. This project proposes the need to supplement these data with an analysis of the perception of the business sector which will contribute to shed light on the social dimensions of this public-private link that this type of approaches fails to cover. The objective of this project is to examine all those subjective, cultural variables, related with the perception of the business sector, that influence its final decisions in R&D&i and its innovation behaviour. We intend thus to study the perception of science, technology and innovation by the business sector and the attitudes and motivations of the Spanish companies towards the funding and execution of R&D&i (both intramural and in collaboration with the public sector) as well as the main obstacles for the appropriation of scientific knowledge.