A Review on the Technology Transfer Models ... - EuroJournals

European Journal of Social Sciences – Volume 10, Number 4 (2009)
1. Introduction
Based on a review of literature, technology transfer (TT) is not a new thing. Researchers have traced
back TT process to the pre-history of the human species: where TT largely involved tacit knowledge
which is evolutionary prior to explicit knowledge (Donald, 1991; Mathews and Roussel, 1997). As
there were no written languages until 3000 BC, TT had mainly occurred through language; which were
supplemented by equations and diagrams which constitute as the major means of explicit transfer of
technological knowledge (Gorman, 2002). The spoken language and gestures have explicitly
transferred technological knowledge in friendly encounters. However, much of pre-historic TT
between people occurred when people with superior agricultural technology assimilated or eliminated
those who could not reproduce as rapidly (Diamond, 1997).
Segman (1989) who conducted a historical review of TT, traced the TT process from the
Neolithic times, the role of Arabs played in transferring technologies from East to West and the
transfer of English textile expertise to the American textile industry in the 18 th and 19 th Centuries. In
the 18 th Century, despite the English law preventing knowledge migration, France eventually managed
to obtain ‘specialized steel making know-how’ by importing English workers and through industrial
espionage. The success of the American textile industry in THE 18 th and 19 th Century was due to the
transfer of knowledge and expertise by the English textile industry (Cameron, 1960; Irwin and Moore,
1991). Previous studies have shown that certain industries collapsed, for example the English clock and
watch industry, due to the industry resistance to the opportunities of TT (Irwin and Moore, 1991). The
main objective of this paper is to review the evolution and development of TT models in terms of focus
of each model, strengths and limitations of the models, and finally to highlight the significance
influence of knowledge-based view (KBV) and organizational learning (OL) perspectives, which have
strong theoretical foundation, on the current TT models. This review limits its perimeter by focusing
on the inter-firm TT between two unaffiliated organizations.
2. Approaches to Technology Transfer (TT)
Previous studies on TT have employed different approaches to shape and govern the TT efforts. TT as
a domain covers all activities around technological development. Few TT models were developed after
the World War II to govern the implementation of TT activities and their application to marketplace
(Devine et al., 1987; Tenkasi and Mohrman, 1995). Among the traditional TT models developed were
the appropriability model, dissemination model, knowledge utilization model, and communication
model. In the 1970s studies have adopted “the economic international trade approach” in developing a
linear model of TT (Bessant and Francis, 2005). In the 1980s research on TT emphasized on the
effectiveness of the specific technology being transferred which in general is within a broader context
of economic development (Hope, 1983). The 1990s approach emphasizes on the significance of
learning at the organization level as a key element in facilitating technology transfer (Figuereido,
2001).
In late 1980s and early 1990s TT models have started to absorb the principles of the
organization development movement (French and Bell, 1995). Strategic management researchers have
further contributed to the development of TT frameworks based on KBV and OL perspectives as these
perspectives have been found to have quite similar dimensions such as outcomes, processes, barriers
and facilitators (Daghfous, 2004). These perspectives have significantly contributed to the expansion of
TT models since literatures from both KBV and OL perspectives appear to subsume most of the
contributions of the TT literatures (Daghfous, 2004).
551