Influence of exclusive subcontracting on technological innovation: The case of Korean SMEs

IF 1.3 4区经济学 Q3 ECONOMICS

Japan and the World Economy Pub Date : 2025-04-22 DOI:10.1016/j.japwor.2025.101309

Raehyung Lee , Jinki Hong , Duk Hee Lee , Jay Y. Ohm

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Does subcontracting with large firms promote the innovation endeavours of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)? This study addresses this question using panel data from 22,528 observations of Korean SMEs across all industries from 2015 to 2019. We tested the hypotheses individually for five sub-industries based on Pavitt’s (1984, 1990) technological trajectory classification. The findings indicate that exclusive subcontracting negatively affects innovation endeavours, specifically in the supplier-dominated, science-based, and assembly/processing industries. By examining SMEs both as a whole and within specific industries, this study provides new evidence on the relationship between exclusivity and innovation, expanding on prior research that focused on data from limited sectors. Specially, the findings have implications for the innovation strategies of firms, industries, and countries such as South Korea, where SMEs heavily rely on transactions with large firms. These findings offer new quantitative evidence for sectoral innovation systems, emphasising different innovation strategies for each industry.

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来源期刊

Japan and the World Economy ECONOMICS-

CiteScore

2.60

自引率

0.00%

发文量

审稿时长

46 days

期刊介绍： The increase in Japan share of international trade and financial transactions has had a major impact on the world economy in general and on the U.S. economy in particular. The new economic interdependence between Japan and its trading partners created a variety of problems and so raised many issues that require further study. Japan and the World Economy will publish original research in economics, finance, managerial sciences, and marketing that express these concerns.