The micro-foundations of conflicts in joint university-industry laboratories

Borah, Dhruba ORCID: 0000-0001-8125-2549 and Ellwood, Paul ORCID: 0000-0002-3449-530X (2022) The micro-foundations of conflicts in joint university-industry laboratories. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 175. p. 121377.

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Abstract

Whilst extensive research has been conducted on the management of research and development (R&D) alliances between universities and industrial firms, it has largely been concerned with macro-level phenomena such as innovation processes and institutional influences on collaboration. In this conceptual paper, we contribute to the growing research on the micro-foundations of the management of university-industry cooperation by developing a parsimonious theory to explain the origins of conflicts between R&D actors in joint university-industry research laboratories (joint UI labs). We mobilise a theoretical perspective new to this literature that accounts for the variety of individual interests within complex management contexts: multiple agency theory. By these means, we resolve the multitude of individual relationships within a joint UI lab into the interactions between "principals" (e.g., a lab manager) and "agents" (e.g., a scientist). We explain the origins of principal-agent conflicts within joint UI labs in terms of multiple identities, differences in temporal orientation, transcending relationships, claims to ownership of co-produced knowledge, and bargaining power asymmetry. This micro-foundational focus allows us to recommend more nuanced management strategies for mitigating conflicts. We also discuss several potential avenues for future research.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Joint university-industry laboratories, University-industry collaborations, Multiple agency theory, Micro-foundations, Conflicts
Divisions:	Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Management
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	30 Nov 2021 08:47
Last Modified:	29 May 2023 01:30
DOI:	10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121377
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3144187