Technology and external conditions at play: A study of learning-by-licensing practices in China

Learning-by-licensing is a widely used strategy to build technological capabilities. The previous research has often focused on the learning process from the perspective of the technology recipient based on single-level analyses at either the organizational level or the regional level. Relatively little is known about the interactions between cross-level factors. In this study, we look at both the attributes of licensed technology and the external conditions in which the licensee operates, investigating how they interact in the learning-by-licensing process. Based on a unique Chinese dataset, our empirical results reveal that the external technological conditions surrounding licensee firms exert a positive impact on the relationship between licensee innovation performance and technology attributes in terms of both technological complexity and technological generality.