Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

An absorptive capacity theory of knowledge spillover entrepreneurship

  • Published:
Small Business Economics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The knowledge spillover theory of entrepreneurship identifies new knowledge as a source of entrepreneurial opportunities, and suggests that entrepreneurs play an important role in commercializing new knowledge developed in large incumbent firms or research institutions. This paper argues that, knowledge spillover entrepreneurship depends not only on new knowledge but more importantly on entrepreneurial absorptive capacity that allows entrepreneurs to understand new knowledge, recognize its value, and commercialize it by creating a firm. This absorptive capacity theory of knowledge spillover entrepreneurship is tested using data based on U.S. metropolitan areas.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Scholars generally distinguish technology/knowledge transfer from technology/knowledge spillover. Technology transfer refers to the knowledge flow between different parties with compensation based on the market value of the knowledge, and in the case of technology spillover, the knowledge flow is either undercompensated or not compensated at all. However, knowledge is characterized with uncertainty (Arrow 1962). It is difficult to determine the market value of knowledge and thus difficult to identify whether a knowledge flow is a transfer or a spillover (Agarwal et al. 2010).

  2. We appreciate one reviewer’s suggestion that entrepreneurial absorptive capacity can also be tested in an interaction term:\( Entrepreneurship\,=\, \gamma_{1} HumanCapital + \gamma_{2} NewKnowledge\,+\,r_{3} HumanCaptial*NewKnowledge\,+\,\varepsilon_{{}} \). We did find a positive coefficient (significant at the 0.10 level) of the interaction term, consistent with our results in path analysis.

References

  • Acs, Z. J., Anselin, L., & Varga, A. (2002). Patents and innovation counts as measures of regional production of new knowledge. Research Policy, 31(7), 1069–1085.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Acs, Z. J., & Armington, C. (2006). Entrepreneurship, geography, and American economic growth. New York: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Acs, Z. J., & Audretsch, D. B. (1987). Innovation, market structure, and firm size. Review of Economics and Statistics, 69(4), 567–574.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Acs, Z. J., & Audretsch, D. B. (1988). Innovation in large and small firms: An empirical analysis. American Economic Review, 78(4), 678–690.

    Google Scholar 

  • Acs, Z. J., Audretsch, D. B., Braunerhjelm, P., & Carlsson, B. (2009). The knowledge spillover theory of entrepreneurship. Small Business Economics, 32, 15–30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Agarwal, R., Audretsch, D., & Sarkar, M. B. (2007). The process of creative construction: Knowledge spillovers, entrepreneurship, and economic growth. Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, 1, 263–286.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Agarwal, R., Audretsch, D., & Sarkar, M. B. (2010). Knowledge spillovers and strategic entrepreneurship. Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, 4, 271–283.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anselin, L., Varga, A., & Acs, Z. (1997). Local geographic spillovers between university research and high technology innovations. Journal of Urban Economics, 42(3), 422–448.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anselin, L., Varga, A., & Acs, Z. (2000). Geographic and sectoral characteristics of academic knowledge externalities. Papers in Regional Science, 79, 435–443.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arrow, K. J. (1962). The economic implications of learning by doing. Review of Economic Studies, 29(3), 155–173.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Audretsch, D. B. (1995). Innovation and industry evolution. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Audretsch, D. B., & Keilbach, M. C. (2006). Entrepreneurship, economic growth and restructuring. In M. Casson, B. Yeung, A. Basu, & N. Wadeson (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of entrepreneurship. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Audretsch, D. B., Keilbach, M. C., & Lehmann, E. E. (2006). Entrepreneurship and economic growth. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Audretsch, D. B., & Lehmann, E. E. (2005). Does the knowledge spillover theory of entrepreneurship hold for regions? Research Policy, 34(8), 1191–1202.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braunerhjelm, P., Acs, Z. J., Audretsch, D. B., & Carlsson, B. (2010). The missing link: Knowledge diffusion and entrepreneurship in endogenous growth. Small Business Economics, 34(2), 105–125.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Camisón, C., & Forés, B. (2010). Knowledge absorptive capacity: New insights for its conceptualization and measurement. Journal of Business Research, 63(7), 707–715.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Casson, M. (1982). The entrepreneur: An economic theory. Oxford: Martin Robertson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, W. M., & Levinthal, D. A. (1990). Absorptive capacity: A new perspective on learning and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35(1), 128–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Florida, R. (2002). The economic geography of talent. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 92(4), 743–755.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Florida, R., Mellander, C., & Stolarick, K. (2008). Inside the black box of regional development: Human capital, the creative class and tolerance. Journal of Economic Geography, 8(5), 615–649.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garson, D. (2011). Path analysis. Retrieved May 31, 2011, from http://faculty.chass.ncsu.edu/garson/PA765/path.htm.

  • Glaeser, E. L. (1998). Are cities dying? Journal of Economic Perspectives, 12, 139–160.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Griliches, Z. (1979). Issues in assessing the contribution of research and development to productivity growth. Bell Journal of Economics, 10(1), 92–116.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hecker, D. E. (2005). High-technology employment: A NAICS-based update. Monthly Labor Review, July, 57–72.

  • Jacobs, J. (1969). The economy of cities. New York: Random House.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jaffe, A. B. (1986). Technological opportunity and spillovers of R&D: Evidence from firms’ patents, profits, and market value. American Economic Review, 76(5), 984–1001.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jaffe, A. B. (1989). Real effects of academic research. American Economic Review, 79(5), 957–970.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jaffe, A. B., Trajtenberg, M., & Henderson, R. (1993). Geographic localization of knowledge spillovers as evidenced by patent citations. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 108(3), 577–598.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kim, L. (1998). Crisis construction and organizational learning: Capability building in catching-up at Hyundai Motor. Organization Science, 9(4), 506–521.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, S. Y., Florida, R., & Acs, Z. J. (2004). Creativity and entrepreneurship: A regional analysis of new firm formation. Regional Studies, 38(8), 879–891.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lucas, R. E., Jr. (1988). On the mechanism of economic growth. Journal of Monetary Economics, 22, 3–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marshall, A. (1920). Principles of economics. London: Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Michelacci, C. (2002). Low returns in R&D due to the lack of entrepreneurial skills. The Economic Journal, 113, 207–225.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mokyr, J. (1990). The lever of riches. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mowery, D. C., & Oxley, J. E. (1995). Inward technology transfer and competitiveness: The role of national innovation systems. Cambridge Journal of Economics, 19(1), 67–93.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peri, G. (2005). Determinants of knowledge flows and their effect on innovation. Review of Economics and Statistics, 87(2), 308–322.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Qian, H. (2010). Talent, creativity and regional economic performance: The case of China. The Annals of Regional Science, 45(1), 133–156.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Qian, H., & Li, H. (2008). The impact of sector specialization on entrepreneurial activity. In Z. Acs & R. Stough (Eds.), Public policy in an entrepreneurial economy: Creating the conditions for business growth. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rauch, J. E. (1993). Productivity gains from geographic concentration of human capital: Evidence from the cities. Journal of Urban Economics, 34(3), 380–400.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Romer, P. M. (1990). Endogenous technological change. Journal of Political Economy, 98(5), S71–S102.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schultz, T. W. (1961). Investment in human capital. American Economic Review, 51(1), 1–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schumpeter, J. A. (1934). The theory of economic development. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shane, S., & Venkataraman, S. (2000). The promise of entrepreneurship as a field of research. Academy of Management Review, 25, 217–221.

    Google Scholar 

  • Solow, R. M. (1956). A contribution to the theory of economic growth. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 70(1), 65–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Solow, R. M. (1957). Technical change and the aggregate production function. The Review of Economics and Statistics, 39(3), 312–320.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zahra, S. A., & George, G. (2002). Absorptive capacity: A review, reconceptualization, and extension. Academy of Management Review, 27(2), 185–203.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs, Cleveland State University, 2121 Euclid Ave., UR 315, Cleveland, OH, 44115, USA

    Haifeng Qian

  2. School of Public Policy, George Mason University, 3351 Fairfax Dr., MS 3B1, Arlington, VA, 22201, USA

    Zoltan J. Acs

Authors
  1. Haifeng Qian
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Zoltan J. Acs
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Haifeng Qian.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Qian, H., Acs, Z.J. An absorptive capacity theory of knowledge spillover entrepreneurship. Small Bus Econ 40, 185–197 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-011-9368-x

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-011-9368-x

Keywords

JEL Classifications

Search

Navigation