Does external linkage stimulate innovation capacity? The analysis based on “dual-pipelines” framework

Drawing on “buzz-and-pipeline” theory, we develop a framework termed “dual-pipelines” to discover how the local innovation capacity can benefit from transnational and domestic introduced technology. We find that the intensity of transnational and domestic patent introduction both have an inverted U-shaped relationship with local innovation capacity. Also, the relatedness and similarity of domestic technology introduced are advantageous to local innovation. However, the transnational introduced technologies are only beneficial if they perform similarly to the local knowledge base while having no significant effect if merely showing relatedness. Finally, transnational and domestic technology introductions complement each other in promoting local innovation capacity.