TY - JOUR

T1 - The spatial configuration of innovation networks in China

AU - Lyu, Guoqing

AU - Liefner, Ingo

N1 - Funding information: The authors greatly appreciate the helpful comments of reviewers and editors, which have significantly contributed to improving the quality of the paper. We are also grateful to Sabine Jessberger for her work on organizing the project and carrying out the interviews. Thanks are also due to Professor Gang Zeng, East China Normal University, Shanghai, and his group for their help conducting research in China. This research was funded by grants from the German Research Foundation (DFG Li981/8-1), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41371147, 41771143) and the Sino-German (CSC-DAAD) Postdoc Scholarship Program (201600260053). The authors greatly appreciate the helpful comments of reviewers and editors, which have significantly contributed to improving the quality of the paper. We are also grateful to Sabine Jessberger for her work on organizing the project and carrying out the interviews. Thanks are also due to Professor Gang Zeng, East China Normal University, Shanghai, and his group for their help conducting research in China. This research was funded by grants from the German Research Foundation (DFG Li981/8-1), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41371147, 41771143) and the Sino-German (CSC-DAAD) Postdoc Scholarship Program (201600260053). The paper complies with the ethical standards as put forward by GeoJournal. Moreover, no potential conflict of interest relevant to this paper was reported.

PY - 2018/12

Y1 - 2018/12

N2 - China is rising and gradually developing into an innovation-oriented economy. This transition is fueled by public and private investment in education and by increasing inputs into science and technology. Little attention, however, has been paid to the great differences in China-specific context peculiarity. Hence, the paper assesses Chinese innovation networks using a comprehensive analytical model that includes network configuration, regional environment, government interference and firm attributes. The empirical analysis examines China’s machinery manufacturing industry to test the determinants of the spatial character of Chinese innovation networks based on questionnaire surveys and illustrative cases. Our study finds that Chinese innovation networks are affected not only by innovation resource endowments and firm attributes, but also by government interference and regional culture. Regarding the influence of regional culture, the typical Northern culture with the importance of guanxi plays an important role in the process of searching for partners and makes the innovation network and interpersonal network interwoven. Firms’ ownership and innovation ability are the two essential variables to determine whether any of the regional elements are of significance.

AB - China is rising and gradually developing into an innovation-oriented economy. This transition is fueled by public and private investment in education and by increasing inputs into science and technology. Little attention, however, has been paid to the great differences in China-specific context peculiarity. Hence, the paper assesses Chinese innovation networks using a comprehensive analytical model that includes network configuration, regional environment, government interference and firm attributes. The empirical analysis examines China’s machinery manufacturing industry to test the determinants of the spatial character of Chinese innovation networks based on questionnaire surveys and illustrative cases. Our study finds that Chinese innovation networks are affected not only by innovation resource endowments and firm attributes, but also by government interference and regional culture. Regarding the influence of regional culture, the typical Northern culture with the importance of guanxi plays an important role in the process of searching for partners and makes the innovation network and interpersonal network interwoven. Firms’ ownership and innovation ability are the two essential variables to determine whether any of the regional elements are of significance.

KW - China

KW - Firm attributes

KW - Government interference

KW - Innovation network

KW - Regional environment

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85040235810&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1007/s10708-017-9844-1

DO - 10.1007/s10708-017-9844-1

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85040235810

VL - 83

SP - 1393

EP - 1410

JO - GeoJournal

JF - GeoJournal

SN - 0343-2521

IS - 6

ER -