Abstract:

The analysis of technical, economic, and spatial influences for transnational and indigenous enterprises needs a theoretical transition from technical spillover to technical interaction, based on the technical evolution of local enterprises and the market. Compared with the technology spillover theory, the theory of technology interaction emphasizes the bidirectional flow of technology, implementation of technology behavior, and dynamic and bidirectional accumulation of technological influence-indicating that a new theoretical framework is needed. By introducing interaction terms in the multivariate regression model, this paper empirically describes the impact of technical interactions between transnational and local enterprises from the perspective of technical capability and technical behavior interactions on the innovation performance of Chinese high-tech industries. The model used in this study included the innovation performance of local enterprises as the dependent variable, the interaction of technical capabilities among transnational and local enterprises and the interaction of R&D behavior among transnational and local enterprises as the independent variables, and enterprise scale, capital intensity, market structure, and the enterprise’s ability to enter the international market as control variables. The findings indicate that interactions involving technical capabilities have significant positive effects on the innovation performance of local enterprises. This result shows that the technological influence of local and transnational enterprises in the field of high-tech manufacturing in China is changing from an indirect and one-way technology spillover to more active, frequent, and complex technological interactions that have played a positive role in promoting the innovation performance of local high-tech manufacturing enterprises. Furthermore, technical behavior interaction results in an increase in research intensity for both transnational and local enterprises, which enhances the innovation performance of indigenous enterprises and supports the viewpoint that transnational enterprises foster the R&D behavior of local enterprises. The regression results of the control variables show that the capacity for accessing the international market has a significant negative effect on an enterprise’s innovation performance, and the effect of scale, capital intensity of a local enterprise, and market structure on enterprise innovation performance is not statistically significant. For developing regions that have experienced rapid industrialization by carrying out the transfer of international industries, there is considerable significance in conducting a serious examination of the technological interrelationships between multinational and local firms, establishing the benign interaction mechanism between them to promote the integration of regional innovation resources, and building a more competitive regional innovation system. The results of this paper can enrich people’s understanding regarding technical interactions between transnational and local enterprises and their underlying mechanism, given the background of globalization. Findings of this study should also provide inspiration for policy-making decisions of regional innovation systems as integrated global forces.

Key words: transnational and indigenous enterprises, technical interaction, innovation performance, high-tech manufacturing industry, China