Intellectual property rights in innovation management research: A review

The issue of intellectual property rights (IPRs) is assuming increasing importance, especially for innovative firms seeking international growth. This leads to an increasing need for IPR research. Nevertheless, so far it is not known how well the current research answers to this emerging need. Hence, this study finds out how IPR research has evolved in the literature on innovation management and identifies the current trends. In order to do this we analysed articles published in the years 1970–2009 in the seven leading innovation management journals. We found 111 articles focusing on IPR issues for our systematic content analysis. The results indicate that IPRs are a fast-growing research field in innovation management, but there is a need to develop coherent constructs and conceptual frameworks that would strengthen the theoretical basis of the research. Most of the studies emphasise patents, rely on secondary data, and focus on North American and European contexts. The article concludes with suggestions for future research.

► IPR is a fast-growing research field in innovation management. ► IPR research still lacks conceptual clarity. ► Most IPR studies focus on patenting and rely heavily on secondary macro-level data. ► IPR research is becoming increasingly international. ► IPR research is still descriptive, focusing on specific industries or locations.