ABSTRACT
Beginning in the early 1980s, the number of companies seeking to develop international technological capacity has risen sharply (Roberts, 1997). This aspiration concerns both American companies and a growing number of European, Japanese, and other Asian groups. Nonetheless, the globalization of corporate R&D activities has been seemingly overlooked by management researchers (Cheng & Bolon, 1993). Today, companies are facing accelerating global competition. R&D, essential for the continuity of a company, has undoubtedly been affected by this phenomenon (Gerybadze & Reger, 1999). Although this field of research is relatively new, a strong dichotomy has emerged within the analyses of the R&D globalization phenomenon (Brechje, 1999). Owing to the specific nature of R&D, some scholars argue that this activity is centralized in the country of origin of the parent corporation, whereas opponents attempt to demonstrate the substantial growth of internationalization of R&D. It is only since the early 1990s that academics and managers have explored strategies specifically related to globalization of R&D.
