Development strategies for high technology industries in a world of fragmented production : Israel, Ireland, and Taiwan

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Political Science, 2005.Includes bibliographical references (p. [318]-331).One of the most unexpected changes of the 1990s is that firms in a number of emerging economies not previously known for their high-technology industries have leapfrogged to the forefront in new Information Technologies (IT). Surprisingly, from the perspective of comparative political economy theories, the IT industries of these countries use different business models and have carved out different positions in the global IT production networks. Of these emerging economies, the Taiwanese, Israeli, and Irish have successfully nurtured the growth of their IT industries. This dissertation sets out to establish that emerging economies have more than one option for developing their high technology industries. Moreover, it advances a theoretical framework for analyzing how different choices lead to long-term consequences and to the development of successful and radically different industrial systems. Hence, this dissertation strives to give politics - the art and profession of creating alternatives and the social struggles of choosing between, and acting on, them - the importance that it seems to have lost in the social sciences. The research focuses on the role of the state in shaping the structure of the IT industry in Israel, Ireland, and Taiwan.(cont.) It argues that the developmental path of the IT industry is influenced by four critical decisions by the state. First, decisions about how to acquire the necessary R&D skills influence which organizations - public or private - play a leading role in innovation. Second, state decisions about financing significantly affect both the R&D resources available to the industry and the scope of R&D activity. Third, state efforts to develop local leading companies have long-term consequences for the industry's opportunity structure. Fourth, state decisions regarding foreign firms and investors within and outside national borders affect the resources and the information that the industry receives from its customers, as well as the diffusion and development of specific innovative capabilities. Of particular importance are state decisions that develop specific links between local and foreign companies, investors, and financial markets. Overall, the dissertation utilizes this framework to explain the divergent development of the IT industry in Taiwan, Israel, and Ireland.by Dan Breznitz.Ph.D

The Rise and Fall of the Taiwan independence Policy: Power Shift, Domestic Constraints, and Sovereignty Assertiveness (1988-2010)

How to explain the rise and fall of the Taiwan independence policy? As the Taiwan Strait is still the only conceivable scenario where a major power war can break out and Taiwan\u27s words and deeds can significantly affect the prospect of a cross-strait military conflict, to answer this question is not just a scholarly inquiry. I define the Taiwan independence policy as internal political moves by the Taiwanese government to establish Taiwan as a separate and sovereign political entity on the world stage. Although two existing prevailing explanations--electoral politics and shifting identity--have some merits, they are inadequate to explain policy change over the past twenty years. Instead, I argue that there is strategic rationale for Taiwan to assert a separate sovereignty. Sovereignty assertions are attempts to substitute normative power--the international consensus on the sanctity of sovereignty--for a shortfall in military-economic-diplomatic assets. So when Taiwan\u27s security environment becomes more perilous as a result of adverse power shift and domestic constraints hinder internal balancing efforts, Taiwan is more likely to resort to sovereignty assertions, while favorable power shift and enhanced domestic mobilizational capacity reduce the incentive to assert sovereignty. Using congruence procedure and process tracing and drawing a large amount of historical and qualitative data, I test my argument in five periods: the early Lee Teng-hui years (1988-1994), the late Lee Teng-hui years (1995-1999), Chen Shui-bian\u27s early moderation (2000-2001), the Chen Shui-bian era (2002-2007), and the Ma Ying-jeou era (2008-2010). I find that my theory focusing on external and internal constraints offer a better explanation of the Taiwan independence policy. My findings suggest that balancing, as a survival and security strategy, can take a political face under certain circumstances, and international norms do matter in political leaders\u27 strategic calculations. An important policy implication is that in contrast to the conventional understanding that Taiwan independence grows out of the Taiwanese soil, it actually has an overlooked external origin

Traditional Knowledge in Taiwan: A Call for Greater Participation of Indigenous Peoples in the Global Intellectual Property Marketplace

This Article explores the plight of the Aborigines of Taiwan and the legal protections that exist for their Traditional Knowledge. While Taiwan continues to face international isolation with a diminished number of states recognizing the Republic of China as the seat of China, the island\u27s government has taken limited steps to recognize language, cultural, and economic rights of its Indigenous peoples. International law has not been helpful in protecting Traditional Knowledge, but Taiwan could use its vast economic resources and positive track record in protecting some of these rights to further its goals of international recognition. This Article details the current regulation of Traditional Knowledge, both internationally and within Taiwan, and calls for a new international treaty in which the Republic of China could take part under the auspices of the World Trade Organization to which Taiwan belongs

The role of large-scale government-supported research institutions in development : lessons from Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) for developing countries

Thesis (M.C.P.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2003.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 83-89).This thesis seeks to examine the extent of the role that the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) played in Taiwan's high-technological development and whether developing countries of today can promote such development by creating similar institutional arrangements. Literature on innovation systems was reviewed, particularly national innovation systems and the role of R&D institutions within these. Taiwan's recent economic success, deemed attributable to economic and institutional reforms in recent decades, was also studied. In depth analysis was carried out of its leading high-technological research institute, ITRI, which bridges the gap between industry and academia. Although the case of Taiwan is sometimes presented as a unique example of industrial success of an SME-based state, this thesis argues that this success was possible because the research and development process had a large institute at its core. One way of creating such a research scale is by merging existing institutes, a process that would result in more efficient use of capital and human resources. The case of high-technological development in Pakistan is briefly assessed in order to gauge how its existing institutions structure could be amended to allow such changes to be made. The study concludes with the following three main points: (i) scale is an important factor: Taiwan's SME-based industry was able to succeed because of a large research institute at its core; (ii) in developing countries, governments decide which form of high-technology to pursue and when; thus, timing and choice of sector are important; and (iii) political leadership was seen to be important in the case of Taiwan's development in high-technology, and can play a key role in developing countries of today.by Fareeha Yasmin Iqbal.M.C.P

Examining relationships between external linkages, absorptive capacity and gains in new product knowledge and impacts on new product innovativeness

This thesis investigates relationships between external linkages and new product innovativenessf ocusing particularly on the perspectiveo f a knowledge-enabledv iew of new product development. Building on organisational learning theory and knowledge-basedth eorieso f inter-firm collaboration,t his thesis arguest hat the effects of external linkages on new product innovativeness vary and these are largely contingent upon a finn's absorptive capacity. The finn's level of absorptive capacity determines how effectively knowledge from external collaborators relevant to the new product project is absorbed, resulting in the creation of new knowledge that the finn can apply for its own commercial use. It considers why some firms are more effective than others at absorbing new product related knowledge from external collaborators to facilitate more innovative product development. Based on an empirical study of 116 new product development projects in Taiwanese Information Technology (IT) firms, the thesis assesses the relative importance of external linkages in increasing new product innovativeness. The results showt hat the impacto f horizontall inks (that is, collaborationw ith otherc ompanies, research institutes, and universities) on gains in new product related knowledge is greater than that of vertical linkages (that is, supplier and customer involvement). Compared to links with customers, universities, and research institutes, corporate linkages play the most prominent and consistent role in enhancing the accumulation of new product related knowledge. This knowledge namely pertains to predevelopmenat ssessmentR, ;D, manufacturinga nd marketing. The thesis confirms that the firm's absorptive capacity positively affects its gains in new product related knowledge. In addition, absorptive capacity's interactions with corporate linkages have significant, positive effects on gains in new product related knowledge. However such interaction effects were not observed for the other external linkages, with exception of industry-based research institute linkage. Moreover, the results confinn that the positive impacts of absorptive capacity, corporation linkages, and supplier linkages on new product innovativeness are mediated by the extent of new product related knowledge gained. This thesis bridges the gap between theories of organisational absorptive capacity and the effective generation of new products. It contributes to our understanding of the role of a firm's absorptive capacity in NPD research. It examines this issue from a knowledge-enabled view of new product development. The findings will assist managers to more effectively formulate NPD strategy by incorporating firms' internal learning capacity with the complementary knowledge and technology that external collaborators can provide.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

A dichotomy dismantled : reflections on National Identity among supporters of third force political parties in Taiwan

This thesis explores Taiwanese national identity among supporters of so-called “Third Force” political parties that have emerged as an alternative to Taiwan’s two “old” parties, the KMT and the DPP. The Third Force parties are taken as a manifestation of a stronger Taiwanese identity in a society long characterised by competing Taiwanese and Chinese identities. Taiwanese identity has strengthened in surveys simultaneously with Taiwan’s deepening economic and political integration with China in 2008–2016, and the establishment of the Third Force parties can be seen as a counter-reaction to increasing Chinese influence over Taiwan. This thesis analyses these developments by examining how supporters of Third Force parties define and understand their Taiwanese identity and how this identity relates to Taiwan’s history and the recent socio-political developments, particularly the deepening integration with China. Based on a theoretical background of social constructionism and interdependence in international relations, this thesis uses secondary research to explore the history and contemporary developments of Taiwanese identity and primary research through qualitative semi-structured interviews with Third Force supporters, complemented by an interview with a Third Force politician. The national identity of the interviewees is examined through qualitative content analysis. Additionally, the study includes the author’s personal field observations from Taiwan in 2016–17. The results indicate that Third Force supporters construct their identity through democratic civic values. Thus, their rejection of Chinese identity arises from the lack of similar values in China. This sense of identity has evolved dynamically through societal functions such as education and life experiences within the context of contested official and popular nationalisms. Owing to this identity, the Third Force supporters wish that Taiwan could become a “normal” country whose existence is not defined in relation to China. A similarly broader focus is desired in domestic politics to break the old dichotomy of the KMT and the DPP. Through comparisons with earlier research, this study proposes a model of national identity among Third Force supporters. It depicts a civic community that governs a multitude of ethnicities, political actors, and international networks grounded in shared civic values. Adherents to this model reject ethno-nationalism and the dichotomous struggle between Taiwanese and Chinese identities by asserting an inclusive and flexible yet overtly Taiwanese civic identity. Further research should be conducted to establish the validity of this model and its relation to Taiwanese society in general

External incentives, industrial development and regional economic integration

The revival of regional integration in the European Community (EC) in the early 1980s has brought about profound implications for the development of regional integration and its related theory. Firstly, European industry searching to promote its competitiveness highlighted the need for a "European-level" solution to European economic decline and contributions to the relaunching of European integration. Secondly, as a result of the renewed momentum for regional integration, external factors which were neglected by previous efforts in theory-exploration, have become more noticeable in the process of regional integration.The purpose of this thesis about external factors is to analyse to what extent the progress of regional integration is driven by the private sector. The relaunching of European integration which brought about the successful  passage of the Single European Act has demonstrated the crucial contribution of the business community to  accelerating  the progress of integration.This thesis further offers an analysis of the proposition that the impact of external factors on industrial development is the key to understanding the process of creating the Chinese Economic Area (CEA). It explores the argument  that instead of being motivated by political factors, the process of regional integration is primarily stimulated by  industrial development in the private sector. It concludes by suggesting a new focus for the study of regional  integration - the "external incentives-industrial development" approach, and comparative insights into the EC and  the CEA