Tian Feng
Degree: PhD
Title: Australia-China technology collaboration: Opportunity, opportunism and knowledge sickness
Overview: Since 1983, China's economy
has undergone rapid growth. According to preliminary estimations, the
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of China in 2003 was RMB 11,6694 trillion,
up to 9.1 percent over the previous year (National Bureau of Statistics
China, 2003). China's accession to World Trade Organisation (WTO) in
November 2001 will have a substantial impact on competition throughout
the Chinese market increasing the pressure on Chinese Firms to compete
on the basing technology as well as low labour cost.
During transition to a more technology based economy Chinese companies are acquiring western
technology in areas where they have recently lagged. Some of this technology transfer is from
Australia, particularly in food, healthcare and mineral processing.
The research investigates the sale of Australian technology to China through licensing agreements,
alliances, join-ventures and turnkey projects. Building on the work of Teece (1987, 2002), the
research examines technology exchange using a transactions cost approach. In particular, it looks
at the concept of absorptive capacity (Chen and Levential, 1990) as an explanation for successful
technology transfer.
The study will use a sample of 120 Australian- Chinese technology collaborations. Through case
studies and the extension of a survey instrument developed by Lowe and Talyor (1998), the
research will then assess the impact of opportunism and " knowledge stickiness" on the strategic
options adopted.
Principal Supervisor: Professor Julian Lowe
Associate Supervisor: Liu Gang
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