Non-R&D SMEs: External knowledge, absorptive capacity and product innovation

Small Business Economics

Volumn 43, Issue 2, 2014, Pages 447-462

  Moilanen, Mikko ^a   Østbye, Stein ^a   Woll, Kristin ^a  

^a University of Tromsø The Arctic University of Norway   (Norway)

Author keywords

Absorptive capacity; External knowledge; Non R D innovators; Peripheral regions

Indexed keywords

EID: 84904193888     PISSN: 0921898X     EISSN: 15730913     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1007/s11187-014-9545-9     Document Type: Article

References (80)

1. Acs, Z. J., & Audretsch, D. B. (1988). Innovation in large and small firms. American Economic Review, 78, 678-690.
2. Acs, Z., & Audretsch, D. B. (1990). Innovation and small firms. Cambridge Mass: MIT Press.
3. Allen, T. (1986). Organizational structure, information technology and R&D productivity. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 33, 212-217.
4. Arundel, A., Bordoy, C., & Kanerva, M. (2008). Neglected innovators: How do innovative firms that do not perform R&D innovate? Results of an analysis of the innobarometer 2007 survey no. 215. INNO-Metrics Thematic Paper, The Hague.
5. Atkinson, L. (1988). The measurement-statistics controversy: Factor analysis and subinterval data. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 26, 361-364.
6. Audretsch, D. B. (2009). The entrepreneurial society. Journal of Technology Transfer, 34, 245-254.
7. Babakus, E., Ferguson, C. E, Jr, & Jöreskog, K. G. (1987). The sensitivity of confirmatory maximum likelihood factor analysis to violations of measurement scale and distributional assumptions. Journal of Marketing Research, 24, 222-228.
8. Barge-Gil, A., Nieto, M. J., & Santamaría, L. (2011). Hidden innovators: The role of non-R&D activities. Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, 23, 415-432.
9. Bathelt, H., Malmberg, A., & Maskell, P. (2004). Clusters and knowledge: Local buzz, global pipelines and the process of knowledge creation. Progress in Human Geography, 28, 31-56.
10. Becker, W., & Peters, J. (2000). Technological opportunities, absorptive capacities, and innovation. In: Volkswirtschaftliche Diskussionsreihe der Universität Augsburg No. 195.
11. Bell, G. G. (2005). Clusters, networks, and firm innovativeness. Strategic Management Journal, 26, 287-295.
12. Bentler, P. M., & Chou, C.-P. (1987). Practical issues in structural modeling. Sociological Methods and Research, 16, 78-117.
13. Bianchi, M., Campodall'Orto, S., Frattini, F., & Vercesi, P. (2010). Enabling open innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises: How to find alternative applications for your technologies. R&D Management, 40, 414-431.
14. Boschma, R. (2005). Proximity and innovation: A critical assessment. Regional Studies, 39, 61-74.
15. Bowman, E. H., & Hurry, D. (1993). Strategy through the option lens: An integrated view of resource investments and the incremental-choice process. The Academy of Management Review, 18, 760-782.
16. Broström, A. (2010). Working with distant researchers: Distance and content in university-industry interaction. Research Policy, 39, 1311-1320.
17. Cantner, U., & Pyka, A. (1998). Technological evolution: An analysis within the knowledge-based approach. Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, 9, 85-107.
18. Cassiman, B., & Veugelers, R. (2006). In search of complementarity in the innovation strategy: Internal R&D and external knowledge acquisition. Manage Science, 52, 68-82.
19. Chesbrough, H. W. (2003). Open Innovation. The new imperative for creating and profiting from technology. Cambridge Mass: Harvard Business School Press.
20. Chun, H., & Mun, S.-B. (2012). Determinants of R&D cooperation in small and medium-sized enterprises. Small Business Economics, 39, 419-436.
21. Cohen, W., & Levinthal, D. (1989). Innovation and learning: The two faces of R&D. The Economic Journal, 99, 569-596.
22. Cohen, W., & Levinthal, D. (1990). Absorptive capacity: A new perspective on learning and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35, 123-133.
23. Cohen, W., & Levinthal, D. (1994). Fortune favors the prepared firm. Management Science, 40, 227-251.
24. Dahlander, L., & Gann, D. M. (2010). How open is innovation? Research Policy, 39, 699-709.
25. Escribano, A., Fosfuri, A., & Tribo, J. (2009). Managing external knowledge flows: The moderating role of absorptive capacity. Research Policy, 38, 96-105.
26. Flatten, T. C., Engelen, A., Zahra, S. A., & Brettel, M. (2011). A measure of absorptive capacity: Scale development and validation. European Management Journal, 29, 98-116.
27. Freel, M. (1999). The financing of small firm product innovation in the UK. Technovation, 19, 707-719.
28. Freel, M. S. (2007). Are small innovators credit rationed? Small Business Economics, 28, 23-35.
29. Freeman, C. (1968). Chemical process plant: Innovation and the world market. National Institute of Economy, 45, 29-51.
30. Freeman, S., Hutchings, K., Lazaris, M., & Zyngier, S. (2010). A model of rapid knowledge development: The smaller born-global firm. International Business Review, 19, 70-84.
31. Giudici, G., & Paleari, S. (2000). The provision of finance to innovation: A survey conducted among Italian technology-based small firms. Small Business Economics, 14, 37-53.
32. Grünfeld, L. A. (2003). Meet me halfway but don't rush: Absorptive capacity and strategic R&D investment revisited. International Journal of Industrial Organization, 21, 1091-1109.
33. Hagadon, A., & Sutton, R. I. (1997). Technology brokering and innovation in a product development firm. Administrative Science Quartely, 42, 716-749.
34. Hansen, J. A. (1992). Innovation, firm size, and firm age. Small Business Economics, 4, 37-44.
35. Hervas-Oliver, J.-L., Albors-Garrigos, J., & Baixauli, J.-J. (2012). Beyond R&D activities: The determinants of firms' absorptive capacity explaining the access to scientific institutes in low-medium-tech contexts. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 21, 55-81.
36. Hong, S., Oxley, L., & McCann, P. (2012). A survey of the innovation surveys. Journal of Economic Surveys, 26, 420-444.
37. Huang, C., Arundel, A., & Hollanders, H. (2010). How firms innovate: R&D, non-R&D, and technology adoption. UNU-MERIT Working Paper 2010-2027.
38. Kline, R. B. (2005). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling. New York: The Guilford Press.
39. Kostopoulos, K., Papalexandris, A., Papachroni, M., & Loannou, G. (2011). Absorptive capacity, innovation, and financial performance. Journal of Business Research, 64, 1335-1343.
40. Lane, P., Koka, B., & Pathak, S. (2006). The reification of absorptive capacity: A critical review and rejuvenation of the construct. Academy of Management Review, 31, 863-883.
41. Lane, P. J., & Lubatkin, M. (1998). Relative absorptive capacity and inter-organizational learning. Strategic Management Journal, 19, 461-477.
42. Leahy, D., & Neary, J. P. (2007). Absorptive capacity, R&D spillovers, and public policy. International Journal of Industrial Organization, 25, 1089-1108.
43. Lewin, A. Y., Massini, S., & Peeters, C. (2011). Micro-foundations of internal and external practiced routines of absorptive capacity. Organization Science, 22, 81-98.
44. Linder, S. B. (1961). An essay on trade and transformation. Stockholm: Almquist and Wiksell.
45. Little, T. D., Bovaird, J. A., & Card, N. A. (Eds.). (2007). Modeling contextual effects in longitudinal studies. LEA: Mahwah N. J.
46. Lowik, S., van Rossum, D., Kraaijenbrink, J., & Groen, A. (2012). Strong ties as sources of new knowledge: How small firms innovate through bridging capabilities. Journal of Small Business Management, 50, 239-256.
47. Mairesse, J., & Mohnen, P. (2010). Using innovation surveys for econometric analysis. In B. H. Hall & N. Rosenberg (Eds.), Handbook of the economics of innovation (pp. 1129-1155). Amsterdam: Elsevier.
48. Medsker, G. J., Williams, L. J., & Holahan, P. J. (1994). A review of current practices for evaluating causal models in organizational behavior and human resources management research. Journal of Management, 20, 439-464.
49. Meyer, J. W., & Rowan, B. (1977). Institutionalized organizations: Formal structures as myth and ceremony. The American Journal of Sociology, 83, 340-363.
50. Mosey, S., Clare, J. N., & Woodcock, D. J. (2002). Innovation decision making in British manufacturing SMEs. Integrated Manufacturing Systems, 13, 176-183.
51. Muscio, A. (2007). The impact of absorptive capacity on SMEs' collaboration. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 16, 653-668.
52. Muthén, B., & Kaplan, D. (1985). A comparison of some methodologies for the factor analysis of non-normal Likert variables. British Journal of Mathematical and Statistical Psychology, 38, 171-189.
53. Oakey, R., Rothwell, R., & Cooper, S. (1988). Management of innovation in high technology small firms. London: Pinter.
54. OECD. (2005). Oslo manual: Guidelines for collecting and interpreting innovation data (3rd ed.). Paris: OECD Publications.
55. Ortega-Argilés, R., Vivarelli, M., & Voigt, P. (2009). R&D in SMEs: A paradox? Small Business Economics, 33, 3-11.
56. Porter, M. E. (1990). The competitive advantage of nations. New York: Free Press.
57. Rammer, C., Spielkamp, A., & Czarnitzki, D. (2009). Innovation success of non-R&D performers: Substituting technology by management in small firms. Small Business Economics, 33, 35-58.
58. Rocha, F. (1999). Inter- firm technology cooperation: Effects of absorptive capacity, firm-size and specialization. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 8, 253-271.
59. Rosenberg, N. (1982). Inside the black box: Technology and economics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
60. Rothwell, R., & Dodgson, M. (1991). External linkages and innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises. R&D Management, 21, 125-137.
61. Schmidt, T. (2010). Absorptive capacity-one size fits all? A firm-level analysis of absorptive capacity for different kinds of knowledge. Managerial and Decision Economics, 31, 1-18.
62. Selznick, P. (1948). Foundation of the theory of organization. American Sociological Review, 13, 25-35.
63. Som, O. (2012). Innovation without R&D: Heterogenous innovation patterns of non-R&D-performing firms in the German manufacturing industry. Wiesbaden: Springer Gabler.
64. Spanos, Y. E., & Voudouris, E. (2009). Antecedents and trajectories of AMT adoption: The case of greek manufacturing SMEs. Research Policy, 38, 144-155.
65. Spithoven, A., Vanhaverbeke, W., & Roijakkers, N. (2013). Open innovation practices in SMEs and large enterprises. Small Business Economics, 41, 537-562.
66. Stock, G. N., Greis, N. P., & Fischer, W. A. (2001). Absorptive capacity and new product development. Journal of High Technology Management Research, 12, 77-91.
67. Teece, D. J. (1986). Profiting from technological innovation: Implications for integration, collaboration, licensing and public policy. Research Policy, 15, 285-305.
68. Todorova, G., & Durisin, B. (2007). Absorptive capacity: Valuing a reconceptualization. Academy of Management Review, 31, 774-786.
69. Tödtling, F., Lehner, P., & Kaufmann, A. (2009). Do different types of innovation rely on specific kinds of knowledge interactions? Technovation, 29, 59-71.
70. Tsai, W. (2001). Knowledge transfer in interorganizational networks: Effects of network position and absorptive capacity on business unit innovation and performance. Academy of Management Journal, 44, 379-387.
71. Tushman, M. L. (1977). Special boundary roles in the innovation process. Administrative Science Quarterly, 22, 587-605.
72. Uzzi, B. (1996). The sources and consequences of embeddedness for the economic performance of organizations: The network effect. American Sociological Review, 61, 674-698.
73. van den Bosch, F. A. J., Volberda, H. W., & De Boer, M. (1999). Coevolution of firm absorptive capacity and knowledge environment: Organizational forms and combinative capabilities. Organization Science: A Journal of the Institute of Management Science, 10, 551-568.
74. Vanhaverbeke, W., van de Vrande, V., & Chesbrough, H. (2008). Understanding the advantages of open innovation practices in corporate venturing in terms of real options. Creativity and Innovation Management, 17, 251-258.
75. Veugelers, R. (1997). Internal R&D expenditures and external technology sourcing. Research Policy, 26, 303-315.
76. Vinding, A. L. (2006). Absorptive capacity and innovative performance: A human capital approach. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 15, 507-517.
77. Von Hippel, E. (1976). The dominant role of users in scientific instrument innovation process. Research Policy, 5, 212-239.
78. Witt, P. (2004). Entrepreneurs' networks and the success of start-ups. Entrepreneurship and Regional Development, 16, 391-412.
79. Zahra, S. A., & George, G. (2002). Absorptive capacity: A review and reconceptualization, and extension. Academy of Management Review, 27, 185-203.
80. Zahra, S. A., & Hayton, J. C. (2008). The effect of international venturing on firm performance: The moderating influence of absorptive capacity. Journal of Business Venturing, 23, 195-220.