Title: A long-term investigation on global automakers' patents and quality

Authors: Liang-Hung Lin

Addresses: Department of International Business, National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences, Taiwan, PRC

Abstract: Adopting temporal and spatial factors, this study attempts to clarify the influence of quality management and other major determinants on innovation management. Considering the patenting activities and product quality of global vehicle manufacturers, long-term analyses demonstrate that firm quality management and the performance of technological innovation are recursively correlated. Technological innovation in year i enhances quality management in year i. Then, quality management in year i enhances technological innovation in year i + 1. Additionally, regression analyses show that automakers| technological innovations are strongly influenced by geographical location, Research and Development (R&D) expenditures and quality management performance.

Keywords: quality management; innovation management; recursive relationships; long-term investigation; patenting activities; product quality; global vehicle manufacturers; automakers; automotive patents; automobile industry; technological innovation; geographical location; research and development; R&D expenditure.

DOI: 10.1504/IJATM.2009.027166

International Journal of Automotive Technology and Management, 2009 Vol.9 No.3, pp.248 - 259

Published online: 17 Jul 2009 *

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