Abstract
This study examines the impact of cultural differences on the creation of social capital in technology transfer processes. The aim is to understand the influence of culture on relationships, particularly the structural, relational and cognitive dimensions of social capital created in relationships associated with university-industry links, specifically technology transfer (TT). The research builds on a culture-moderated social capital perspective; observing that the characteristics and usefulness of social capital are determined by cultural practices prevailing in social structures. The influence of culture on social capital in case studies of six American and ten Asian technology transfer offices and organizations involved in technology transfer has been investigated. Using university research technology transfer and commercialization as the centerpiece of the empirical work, we examine basic Hofstede's cultural characteristics and the way they influence TT practices in two different culture types. Our findings suggest cultures can influence creation and utilization of social capital in university-industry links. Culture can influence not only relationships with external stakeholders in technology transfer (industry, governmental bodies) but also internal relationships and management styles in TT offices (influences on organizational culture). We propose that the awareness of cultural characteristics and influences is important not only in cross-cultural technology transfer but also domestic operations. Using this awareness to build trust lies at the heart of interactions with internal and external stakeholders. The research results should be useful for entrepreneurs, universities and technology transfer officers in order to better understand the nature, and role, of culture-moderated social capital in technology transfer and to support effective processes for scientific research commercialization.
Highlights
A very competitive environment and dynamic changes in the global economy have led private and public sector institutions to unite their efforts to foster the diffusion of knowledge within innovation systems
This paper provides a presentation of findings from a wide-ranging qualitative interview-based research study of technology transfer processes in the USA and East Asia
Most of the Technology transfer offices (TTOs) encountered report that they mostly work within their cultural boundary and in such cases the research findings are clearest
Summary
A very competitive environment and dynamic changes in the global economy have led private and public sector institutions to unite their efforts to foster the diffusion of knowledge within innovation systems. Three TTOs in Hong Kong, four TTOs in Singapore, and three TTOs in Taiwan have been researched via field-work, all representing cultural type II; and six TTOs in Texas representing cultural type I We explore this extreme culture types to illustrate our culturemoderated social capital argument, and, noting the vast literature on US technology transfer, to inform academia and TT managers about benefits and pitfalls of social capital in Asian cultures concerning technology transfer and university-industry links. This study draws on practice-based studies of technology transfer to create a novel conceptualization of relationships management and the influence of culture on social capital in university-industry links. This paper makes a conceptual and empirical contribution to the literature on university-industry links, namely TT It introduces a novel conceptualization of how national cultures shape relationships, namely social capital created in university-industry relationships.
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