Title: International communication of technological knowledge: an empirical study of Taiwan's manufacturing firms

Authors: Bou-Wen Lin, Daniel Berg

Addresses: Graduate School of Management, Yuan-Ze University, Chung-Li, 320 Taiwan, ROC. Lally School of Management and Technology, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, USA

Abstract: The objective of this article is to develop an integrative model of international technology/knowledge transfer (TT/KT). One hundred and eighty-one manufacturing firms in Taiwan were surveyed. The model from a communication perspective focuses on the communication process of TT/KT at the work group and firm level. The model embraces four antecedent variables - climate of collaboration, autonomy of teamwork, technology transferability and competence gaps - to explain communication quality and TT/KT success. Communication quality at the inter-firm and inter-group levels plays a mediating role between those four antecedent variables and TT/KT effectiveness. Empirical evidence supports the communication-based TT/KT model and hypotheses derived. Inter-firm technology or knowledge transfer should be seen as a communication process involving two courses of information flow - workgroup and inter-firm communications. Each course has its antecedents that affect its communication quality. Managerial implications and future research directions are also discussed.

Keywords: knowledge transfer; technological communication; technological learning; technology adoption.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTTC.2002.001778

International Journal of Technology Transfer and Commercialisation, 2002 Vol.1 No.1/2, pp.82-105

Published online: 18 Aug 2003 *

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