Abstract
This paper estimates the effect of select university characteristics on the propensity of individual scientists to interact with private sector companies. The academic prestige of an institution has a direct negative effect on scientists’ interactions with the private sector, while the level of industrial R&D expenditures has a direct positive effect on such interactions. Institutional characteristics also moderate the effect of some individual-level variables such as tenure status, grant activity, involvement with students and disciplinary effects.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Boardman, P. C., & Ponomariov, B. L. (2007). Reward systems and Nsf University Research Centers: The impact of tenure on University Scientists’ valuation of applied and commercially relevant research. Journal of Higher Education, 78(1), 51–70.
Bozeman, B., & Gaughan, M. (2007). Impacts of grants and contracts on academic researchers’ interactions with industry. Research Policy, 36, 694–707.
Carlsson, B., & Fridh, A. C. (2002). Technology transfer in United States Universities—a survey and statistical analysis. Joural of Evolutionary Economics, 12, 199–232.
Caro, J. M. A., de Lucio, I. F., & Gracia, A. G. (2003). University patents: Output and input indicators ... of what? Research Evaluation, 12(1), 5–16.
Corley, E., & Gaughan, M. (2005). Scientists’ participation in University Research Centers: What are the gender differences? Journal of Technology Transfer, 30(4), 371–381.
Coupe, T. (2001). Science is golden: Academic R&D and university patents. Paper presented at the Proceedings of the conference innovations and intellectual property: Economic and managerial perspectives, Brussels, November 22–23.
Crane, D. (1965). Scientists at Major and Minor Universities: A study of productivity and recognition. American Sociological Review, 30(5), 699–714.
Crow, M. M., & Bozeman, B. (1998). Limited by design: R&D laboratories in the U.S. national innovation system. New York: Columbia University Press.
Debackere, K., & Veugelers, R. (2005). The role of academic technology transfer organizations in improving industry science links. Research Policy, 34(3), 321–342.
DiGregorio, D., & Shane, S. (2003). Why do some universities generate more start-ups than others? Research Policy, 32, 209–227.
Dillman, D. A. (2000). Mail and Internet surveys: The tailored design method (2nd ed.). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
Feller, I., Ailes, C. P., & Roessner, J. D. (2002). Impacts of research universities on technological innovation in industry: Evidence from Engineering Research Centers. Research Policy, 31(3), 457–474.
Feller, I., & Roessner, D. (1995). What does industry expect from university partnerships. Issues In Science And Technology, 12(1), 80–84.
Foltz, J., Barham, B., & Kim, K. (2000). Universities and agricultural biotechnology patent production. Agribusiness, 16(1), 82–95.
Foltz, J., Kim, K., & Barham, B. (2001). A dynamic count data analysis of university Ag-biotech patents: Food marketing policy center Research report 56.
Glick, W. (1985). Conceptualizing and measuring organizational and psychological climate: Pitfalls in multilevel research. Academy of Management Review, 10(3), 601–616.
Hal, R. (1991). Organizations: Structures, processes and outcomes. Prentice Hall.
Link, A., Siegel, D. S., & Bozeman, B. (2006). An empirical analysis of the propensity of academics to engage in informal university technology transfer. Troy, NY: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Lockett, A., & Wright, M. (2005). Resources, capabilities, risk capital and the creation of university spin-out companies. Research Policy, 34(7), 1043–1057.
Lockett, A., Wright, M., & Franklin, S. (2003). Technology transfer and universities’ spin-out strategies. Small Business Economics, 20, 185–201.
Long, J. S., & McGinnis, R. (1981). Organizational context and scientific productivity. American Sociological Review, 46(4), 422–442.
Lowry, R. (1999). Concepts and applications of inferential statistics. Poughkeepsie, NY: Vassaar College.
Markman, G. D., Phan, P. H., Balkin, D. B., & Gianiodis, P. T. (2005). Entrepreneurship and university-based technology transfer. Journal of Business Venturing, 20(2), 241–263.
Melin, G. (2000). Pragmatism and self-organization—research collaboration on the individual level. Research Policy, 29(1), 31–40.
Mowday, R. T., & Sutton, R. I. (1993). Organizational behavior: Linking individuals and groups to organizational contexts. Annual Review of Psychology, 44, 195–229.
Mowery, D. C., Nelson, R. R., Sampat, B. N., & Ziedonis, A. A. (2001). The growth of patenting and licensing by U.S. universities: An assessment of the effects of the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980. Research Policy, 30, 99–119.
Owen-Smith, J. (2003). From separate systems to a hybrid order: Accumulative advantage across public and private science at research one universities. Research Policy, 32(6), 1081–1104.
Payne, A. A., & Silow, A. (2003). Does federal research funding increase university research output? Advances in Economic Analysis & Policy, 3, 1–24.
Ponomariov, B. L. (2006). Student centrality in university-industry interactions. Atlanta, GA: Georgia Institute of Technology.
Powers, J. B., & McDougall, P. P. (2005). University start-up formation and technology licensing with firms that go public: A resource-based view of academic entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing, 20(3), 291–311.
Schneider, B., & Reichers, A. (1983). On the etiology of climates. Personnel Psychology, 36, 19–39.
Thursby, J. G., & Thursby, M. C. (2004). Are faculty critical? Their role in university-industry licensing. Contemporary Economic Policy, 22(2), 162–178.
Tornquist, K. M., & Kallsen, L. A. (1994). Out of the ivory tower—characteristics of institutions meeting the research needs of industry. Journal of Higher Education, 65(5), 523–539.
Turk-Bicakci, L., & Brint, S. (2005). University-industry collaboration: Patterns of growth for low- and middle-level performers. Higher Education, 49(1–2), 61–89.
Veugelers, R., & Cassiman, B. (2005). R&D cooperation between firms and universities. Some empirical evidence from Belgian manufacturing. International Journal of Industrial Organization, 23(5–6), 355–379.
Zucker, L. G., & Darby, M. R. (1996). Star scientists and institutional transformation: Patterns of invention and innovation in the formation of the biotechnology industry. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 93(23), 12709–12716.
Zucker, L. G., Darby, M. R., & Brewer, M. B. (1998). Intellectual human capital and the birth of US biotechnology enterprises. American Economic Review, 88(1), 290–306.
Zucker, L. G., Darby, M. R., & Torero, M. (2002). Labor mobility from academy to commerce. Journal of Labor Economics, 20(3), 629–660.
Acknowledgements
The research reported here was supported by grants from the NSF “Assessing R&D Projects’ Impacts on Scientific and Technical Human Capital Development” (SBR 98-18229, PI B. Bozeman), and “University Determinants of Women’s Academic Career Success” (REC-0447878, PI M. Gaughan). Special thanks to G. Yalcintas of SUNY, and W. Streitz and C. Burke of UC who kindly provided desegregated patent counts for each of the campuses within their respective university systems. Many thanks to P. Boardman and K. Johns for their comments on early drafts. Any opinions and mistakes in the paper are the author’s.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ponomariov, B.L. Effects of university characteristics on scientists’ interactions with the private sector: an exploratory assessment. J Technol Transfer 33, 485–503 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10961-007-9047-x
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10961-007-9047-x