Abstract
There can be little doubt that over the last three decades diffusion theory has had a major impact on a large number of disciplines. However diffusion theory is but one way of thinking about ‘technology transfer’, and here we present an alternative view — namely the notion of translation embodied in actor-network theory (ANT). We believe ANT offers ways of thinking about transfer problems that diffusion metaphors fail to adequately address. Using a retrospective analysis of a case study, we examine and contrast key concepts of these two approaches to technology transfer.
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© 1997 IFIP International Federation for Information Processing
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McMaster, T., Vidgen, R.T., Wastell, D.G. (1997). Technology transfer: diffusion or translation?. In: McMaster, T., Mumford, E., Swanson, E.B., Warboys, B., Wastell, D. (eds) Facilitating Technology Transfer through Partnership. IFIP Advances in Information and Communication Technology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-35092-9_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-35092-9_4
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
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