Receiving information at Korean and Taiwanese universities, industry, and GRIs

This article examines the incentive structure underlying information transfers received by the three key players of the Triple Helix paradigm: universities, industry, and government research institutes (GRIs). For Korea and Taiwan, which are the cases under analysis here, such an empirical examination has not yet been conducted on a quantitative level. Using a unique dataset of survey responses from a maximum of 325 researchers based in Korean and Taiwanese universities, industry, and GRIs, this article shows that there are some significant differences between and within countries. Most importantly, policy interventions to promote university-industry-GRI interactions impact the degree to which specific information transfers are considered useful. In Korea, formal transfers are emphasized, while both formal and, in particular, informal transfers are emphasized in Taiwan.