Does social trust stimulate university technology transfer? Evidence from China.

Abstract

This paper examines the effect of social trust on university technology transfer. A large sample of Chinese universities from the 2007-2017 period was used. We find that social trust facilitates university technology transfer. The finding remain valid after a series of robustness. The mechanism test shows that social trust facilitates university technology transfer by improving the level of university-industry cooperative innovation. Our study suggests that social trust is an important factor that affects university technology transfer.