Articles

Development Path of University and Industry Collaboration (UIC) Activities: Case of Japan and Thailand

Siriporn Pittayasophon and Patarapong Intarakumnerd

Abstract

This article investigates the development path of university and industry collaboration (hereinafter UIC). The remarkable findings are as follows; Firstly, Japan and Thailand have different level of national innovation systems; nonetheless, common development patterns were found. In the cases of UIC evolving overtime, two development paths were found: step-by-step (from low-to medium and to high relational intensity) and leapfrog (from low to high or from medium to high). For those not evolving overtime, both UIC set fixed specific goals and collaborative patterns. University’s expertise (supply-push) and firm’s technological capability (demand-pull), trust (built by both intermediaries and  the two partners) and mutual interest are drivers shaping development paths. Secondly, university-industry collaboration activities have not developed when researchers were not interested to continue working or firm lacked capabilities to carry on projects after government supports were terminated. Lastly, important activities in two national systems are different. Researcher mobility from companies to universities frequently happened in the Japanese cases, but in the Thai cases, mobility of students is much more prevalent.  

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