Title: Impact of the interactive mechanism between resource transfer and absorptive capacity on innovation performance: evidence from two Ghanaian automobile clusters

Authors: Hu Xuhua; Michael Addai; Adelaide Spio-kwofie; Chosniel Elikem Ocloo; Abdul-Aziz Ibn Musah

Addresses: Jiangsu University, 301 Xuefu Rd., Zhenjiang 202013, China ' Accra Technical University, P.O. Box 561, Ghana ' Takoradi Technical University, P.O. Box 256, Takoradi, Ghana ' Accra Technical University, P.O. Box 561, Ghana ' Jiangsu University, No. 301 Xuefu Road, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu 212013, China

Abstract: This study examined the impact of the interactive mechanism between resource transfer and absorptive capacity on innovation performance. The significance of this study is to expatiate on the knowledge, the positioning and the role of absorptive capacity in the process of resource transfer and innovation performance. Data were procured through questionnaire administration using a two-stage cluster sampling procedure in selecting 561 small-scale automobile firms from two automobile clusters in Ghana. We employed the structural equation modelling analytical tool for our analysis. Our result explicitly revealed that the interactive mechanism (A_X_B) between resource transfer and AC results in a far more positive and significant impact on innovation performance than AC acting as a mere moderator. We recommended that Ghanaian automobile cluster-based firms should develop their absorptive capacity to ensure that, at all times they possess the capacity to identify resources that only have the grounded potential to enhance innovation performance.

Keywords: resource transfer; absorptive capacity; innovation performance; automobile clusters; interactivity mechanism.

DOI: 10.1504/EJIM.2023.132433

European Journal of International Management, 2023 Vol.20 No.4, pp.576 - 606

Received: 19 Aug 2018
Accepted: 06 Aug 2019
Published online: 20 Jul 2023 *

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