Knowledge search and open innovation performance in an emerging market: Moderating effects of government-enterprise relationship and market focus
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how knowledge search (KS) affects open innovation performance (OIP) in consideration of appropriability hazard in an emerging market context.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors identify two types of appropriability hazard related to KS activities in the improvement of OIP: partner-related and market-related hazards, and construct a model of KS to the OIP with the government-enterprise relationship and market focus (MF) as moderating factors of the analysis framework, using the hierarchical regression analysis based on a survey sample of 258 Chinese companies.
Findings
The authors find that KS has a stronger positive relationship with OIP in international market-focused enterprises compared with domestic market-focused enterprises. In addition, using a configuration approach, the authors find that KS is more positively related to OIP when enterprises have an international MF and a good relationship with the government, but less in other MF government and enterprises relationship configurations.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to previous research work by identifying two types of appropriability hazard related to KS activities in emerging market countries: partner-related and market-related hazards. The authors argue that a positive relationship between KS and OIP is more likely to occur if these appropriability hazards can be mitigated by export MF and a good relationship with the government which has not been demonstrated in previous research.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This research has been sponsored by NSFC (NO. 71402160; 71502046; 71273078); Zhejiang provincial natural science foundation of China (NO. LQ13G020004; LQ14G020014); The Research Center of Information Technology & Economic and Social Development.
Citation
Zhang, D., Li, S. and Zheng, D. (2017), "Knowledge search and open innovation performance in an emerging market: Moderating effects of government-enterprise relationship and market focus", Management Decision, Vol. 55 No. 4, pp. 634-647. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-04-2016-0211
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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