Technology transfer: The role of culture in transferring technology

The paper presents the results of an empirical investigation into the relationships among cultural dimensions and the transfer of manufacturing technology. The framework of the study was developed to address these two dimensions of the study. For the cultural aspects, cultural dimensions of power distance, individualism-collectivism, masculinity-femininity, and uncertainty avoidance were used. For the technology transfer, the embodiment forms of technology approach were used. The embodiment forms perspective views technology as comprising four components, namely, object-embodied form, human-embodied form, document-embodied form, and institution-embodied form. The study was conducted in a major local/foreign joint venture apparel manufacturing company that was involved in transferring manufacturing technology to Sri Lanka. The data was collected through a questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics and the regression method. The results of the investigation revealed high transfer of the components of manufacturing technology. However, the investigation did not reveal any significant linear relationship between any of the cultural dimensions and the transfer of manufacturing technology components. Therefore, though literature emphasises that cultural factors could affect cross-cultural project work, it is not evident in our investigation.