Relationship between Total Quality Management, Knowledge Transfer and Knowledge Diffusion in the Academic Settings

In the emerging knowledge economy, universities play a critical role in knowledge transfer and knowledge diffusion of their research findings to the industry. Using the Total Quality Management opens a new horizon in higher education settings in order to facilitate knowledge transfer process and institutionalize its diffusion in the industrial contexts. In doing so, the main purpose of this study is to investigate total quality management practices affecting knowledge transfer and knowledge diffusion in the academic settings. The method used in this study is a correlation method, and structural equation modeling (SEM) are utilized to analyze the data by means of the path analysis. The research instrument is the questionnaire. The study's participants are a sample of all graduate students, PhD student and Professors of three departments at Shiraz University, Iran; of which 169 persons randomly selected as examples of expertise. The findings of the study indicated a significant relation between learning, Autonomy, as the TQM practices and knowledge transfer, and between knowledge transfer and knowledge diffusion. The study also pointed out that among the TQM practices, learning and Employee Fulfillment, have the significant correlation with knowledge diffusion