Firm R&D Behavior and Evolving Technology in Established Industries

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Knott, Anne Marie; Posen, Hart E.
• 署名单位: Washington University (WUSTL); University of Michigan System; University of Michigan
• 刊物名称: ORGANIZATION SCIENCE
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1047-7039
• DOI: 10.1287/orsc.1070.0332
• 发表日期: 2009
• 页码: 352-367
• 关键词: technological opportunity; appropriability; R& D

摘要

One of the key mechanisms of firms' strategic renewal is R&D, and a key driver of the intensity of R&D is industry context. A number of theories develop propositions linking industry factors to firm R&D behavior, but these theories lack consensus. To date, empirical tests have been unable to resolve the competing predictions because of lack of time-varying measures of technology. We create new measures for technology and then conduct a test of the competing theories. Our results indicate that the data best match a model of innovative behavior in which firms invest in R&D principally to regain eroded advantage rather than to pursue the new frontier.