Resource Spillover from Academia to High-tech Industry: Evidence from New Nanotechnology-based Firms in the U.s.

The role of universities in supporting economicdevelopment has been explored in studies emphasizingthe mechanisms of technology transfer and knowledgespillover. However, in addition to intellectual capital, university scientists bringother resources into research collaboration andcontribute to firm partnerships in both direct andindirect ways. This book develops the concept ofresource spillover, which captures the various waysin which firms can benefit from collaborations withuniversity scientists. The study categorizes theresources possessed by university scientists intointellectual capital, social capital, and positionalcapital, and tests the impact of each on theperformance of firms. Using a sample of newnanotechnology-based firms in the United States, thestudy finds that firms benefit from researchcollaboration in terms of both increased researchcapability and research output and improved publicrelations and research credibility. The workcontributes to the university-industry technologytransfer literature and is useful to managers andpolicy scientists who are developing researchpartnership programs or intermediary organizations.