M. Cetron - Böcker

Several formerly independent trends including the in­ creasing rate of technological change, the demand for greater efficiency and productivity in R&D and innovation, and the need for applying technology to the solution of pressing social and economic problems have recently begun to reinforce each other resulting in renewed interest in technology trans­ fer activities and research. The proliferation of research efforts in the U. S. and Western Europe, increased corporate and governmental efforts to develop mechanisms and incentives for transfer and the growing closeness between transfer and innovation studies led to the decision to convene a meeting with representatives from both research and practice in trans­ fer and innovation in order to establish a "state-of-the-art" baseline and to promote discussion between the researchers and practioners from all sectors in the hope that new research will better reflect the realities of current practice and new mechanisms created by practioners might be improved through the use of knowledge generated from research. How close we came~to the second goal is a question which must be left to the fut~re. The proceedings which follow re­ flect the first goal. If the papers and conclusions occasional­ ly appear to be contradictory or repetitive, or naive, or over­ ly pessimistic or simply based upon too narrow a base or re­ search or experience, they are an accurate reflection of both the state-of-the-art and the lack of communications among in­ dividuals and organizations involved in similar activities.

Technology transfer has a long history, but only recently has it become the subject of study and action. The rapid rate of scientific and technical advance in both Europe and the United States and the existence of large technology gaps among nations has brought the importance of the process into sharper focus, and has c~used technology transfer to have implications for countless aspects of both national and international develop­ ment. Technology transfer has been variously defined as: the process of information transfer between science, technology and actual utilization of scientific data and ideas, to wit: production of goods and services; the process by which science and technology are diffused throughout human activity; the transfer of research results into operations; the process by which technical information originating in one setting is adapted for use in another setting. Collectively, these and other definitions share a common theme which characterizes the process as one of bringing technology i'ilto widespread use in solving mankind's problems in the shortest practical time. The first NATO Advanced Study Institute (ASI) on Technology Transfer in July, 1973, brought together many of the individuals dealing with quantitative data, based on empirical research. This conference had both the advantages and disadvantages of a somewhat detached point of view. The ASI also had lectures contributed by representatives from government agencies and corporations (and a few university-based scholars) who had been active as practitioners or consultants in policy-making and organizational design for technology transfer.