The commercialization of university–held research discoveries is increasingly seen as a promising source of revenue, and a growing number of universities are adding policies and incentives in an attempt to encourage commercialization activities. The effectiveness of these efforts is in jeopardy, however, because these changes can unintentionally create an environment ripe for misalignment between policies and incentives and university scientists’ work identity. We develop a conceptual model that suggests such changes trigger moral and hedonistic cognitive dissonance, and in reaction scientists can engage in identity adaptation via distinct pathways, leading to different levels of commercialization engagement intensity.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AgrawalA. (2006). Engaging the inventor: Exploring licensing strategies for university inventions and the role of latent knowledge. Strategic Management Journal, 27, 63–79.
2.
AmbosT.C., MakelaK., BirkinshawJ., & D'EsteP. (2008). When does university research get commercialized? Creating ambidexterity in research institutions. Journal of Management Studies, 45(8), 1424–1447.
AquinoK., LewisM.U., & BradfieldM. (1999). Justice constructs, negative affectivity, and employee deviance: A proposed model and empirical test. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 20, 1073–1091.
5.
AquinoK. & ReedA.II. (2002). The self–importance of moral identity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 83(6), 1423–1440.
6.
AshfordS.J. & TaylorM.S. (1990). Adaptation to work transitions: An integrative approach. In FerrisG.R. & RowlandK.M. (Eds.), Research in personnel and human resources management (Vol. 8, pp. 1–39). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
7.
AshforthB.E. & KreinerG.E. (1999). How can you do it? Dirty work and the challenge of constructing a positive identity. Academy of Management Review, 24(3), 413–434.
8.
AzoulayP., DingW., & StuartT. (2007). The determinants of faculty patenting behavior: Demographics or opportunities?. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 63(4), 599–623.
9.
BeckerH.S. & CarperJ.W. (1956). The development of identification with an occupation. American Journal of Sociology, 61, 289–298.
10.
BennisW.G. & ThomasR.J. (2002). Geeks & geezers: How era, values, and defining moments shape leaders. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business Press.
11.
BercovitzJ. & FeldmanM.A. (2008). Academic entrepreneurs: Organizational change at the individual level. Organization Science, 19, 69–89.
12.
BercovitzJ. & FeldmanM.P. (2006). Entrepreneurial universities and technology transfer: A conceptual framework for understanding knowledge based economic development. Journal of Technology Transfer, 31(1), 175–188.
13.
BillettS. & SomervilleM. (2004). Transformations at work: Identity and learning. Studies in Continuing Education, 26, 309–326.
14.
BordiaP., RestubogS.L.D., & TangR.L. (2008). When employees strike back: Investigating mediating mechanisms between psychological contract breach and workplace deviance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93(5), 1104.
15.
BrewerM.B. (1991). The social self: On being the same and different at the same time. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 17(5), 475–482.
16.
CarlsonB. & FridhA.C. (2002). Technology transfer in the United States universities. Journal of Evolutionary Economics, 12, 199–232.
17.
ChristensenC.M. & EyringH.J. (2011). The innovative university: Changing the DNA of higher education from the inside out. San Francisco, CA: Jossey–Bass.
18.
CooperJ. (2007). Cognitive dissonance: 50 years of a classic theory. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
19.
CurrallS., FrauenheimE., PerryS., & HunterE. (2014). Organized innovation: A blueprint for renewing America's prosperity. New York: Oxford University Press.
DubinR. (1978). Theory building (2nd ed.). New York: The Free Press.
22.
DuttonJ.E., RobertsL.M., & BednarJ. (2010). Pathways for positive identity construction at work: Four types of positive identity and the building of social resources. Academy of Management Review, 35(2), 265–293.
23.
EisenbergR.S. (1987). Proprietary rights and the norms of science in biotechnology research. Yale Law Journal, 97, 177.
24.
FabrizioK.R. & Di MininA. (2008). Commercializing the laboratory: Faculty patenting and the open science environment. Research Policy, 37(5), 914–931.
25.
FauchartE. & GruberM. (2010). Darwinians, communitarians, and missionaries: The role of founder identity in entrepreneurship. Academy of Management Journal, 54(5), 935–957.
26.
FenwickT. (1998). Women's development of self in the workplace. International Journal of Lifelong Learning, 17(3), 199–217.
27.
FenwickT. (2002). Lady, Inc.: Women learning, negotiating subjectivity in entrepreneurial discourses. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 21(2), 162–177.
28.
FestingerL. (1957). A theory of cognitive dissonance. New York: Row, Peterson, & Co.
29.
FiniR., GrimaldiR., & SobreroM. (2009). Factors fostering academics to start up new ventures: An assessment of Italian founders’ incentives. Journal of Technology Transfer, 34, 380–402.
30.
GansJ.S. & SternS. (2003). The product market and the market for “ideas”: Commercialization strategies for technology entrepreneurs. Research Policy, 32(2), 333–350.
31.
GecasV. (1982). The self–concept. Annual Review of Sociology, 8(1), 1–33.
32.
GianiodisP.T. & BrownJ.A. (2012). University scientists’ choice to commercialize their discoveries. Advances in Entrepreneurship, Firm Emergence and Growth, 14, 63–88.
33.
GrahamJ.W. (1986). Principled organizational dissent: A theoretical essay. Research in Organizational Behavior, 8, 1–52.
34.
GrimaldiR., KenneyM., SiegelD.S., & WrightM. (2011). 30 years after Bayh–Dole: Reassessing academic entrepreneurship. Research Policy, 40(8), 1045–1057.
35.
HallD.T. (2002). Careers in and out of organizations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
36.
HallM. (1976). The theory of groups (Vol. 288). New York: MacMillan Publishing.
37.
Harmon–JonesE. & MillsJ. (1999). An introduction to cognitive dissonance theory and an overview of perspectives on the theory. In Harmon–JonesE. & MillsJ. (Eds.), Cognitive dissonance: Progress on a pivotal theory in social psychology (pp. 3–21). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
38.
HigginsE.T. (1987). Self–discrepancy: A theory relating self and affect. Psychological Review, 94, 319–340.
39.
HigginsE.T. (1989). Self–discrepancy theory: What patterns of self–beliefs cause people to suffer. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology, 22, 93–136.
40.
HillL. (1992). Becoming a manager: Mastery of a new identity. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
41.
HollandR.W., MeertensR.M., & Van VugtM. (2002). Dissonance on the road: Self–esteem as a moderator of internal and external self–justification strategies. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28(12), 1713–1724.
42.
HuttM.D., ReingenP.H., & RonchettoJ.R. (1988). Tracing emergent processes in marketing strategy formation. The Journal of Marketing, 52, 4–19.
43.
IbarraH. (1999). Provisional selves: Experimenting with image and identity in professional adaptation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(4), 764–791.
44.
IbarraH. (2003). Working identity: Unconventional strategies for reinventing your career. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Business Press.
45.
JainS., GeorgeG., & MaltarichM. (2009). Academics or entrepreneurs? Investigating role identity modification of university scientists involved in commercialization activity. Research Policy, 38(6), 922–935.
46.
JensenR.A., ThursbyJ.G., & ThursbyM.C. (2003). Disclosure and licensing of university inventions: “The best we can do with the s** t we get to work with.”International Journal of Industrial Organization, 21(9), 1271–1300.
47.
KeganR. (1982). The evolving self: Problem and process in human development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
48.
KenneyM. & PattonD. (2009). Reconsidering the Bayh–Dole Act and the current university invention ownership model. Research Policy, 38(9), 1407–1422.
49.
KreinerG.E., HollensbeE.C., & SheepM.L. (2006). Where is the “me” among the “we”? Identity work and the search for optimal balance. Academy of Management Journal, 49(5), 1031–1057.
50.
KuranT. (1998). Social mechanisms of dissonance reduction. In HedstromP. & SwedbergR. (Eds.), Social mechanisms: An analytical approach to social theory (pp. 147–171). New York: Cambridge University Press.
51.
LachS. & SchankermanM. (2004). Royalty sharing and technology licensing in universities. Journal of the European Economic Association, 2(2–3), 252–264.
52.
LatourB. & WoolgarS. (1979). Laboratory life: The social construction of scientific facts. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
53.
LinkA.N., SiegelD.S., & BozemanB. (2007). An empirical analysis of the propensity of academics to engage in informal university technology transfer. Industrial and Corporate Change, 16(4), 641–655.
54.
LittleL.M., KluemperD., NelsonD.L., & WardA. (2013). More than happy to help? Customer–focused emotion management strategies. Personnel Psychology, 66(1), 261–286.
55.
LowellJ. (2012). Managers and moral dissonance: Self–justification as a big threat to ethical management?Journal of Business Ethics, 105, 17–25.
56.
MacIntyreA. (1981). After virtue: A study in moral theory. South Bend, IN: University of Notre Dame Press.
57.
MaitlisS. (2009). Who am I now? Sensemaking and identity in posttraumatic growth. In RobertsL.M. & DuttonJ.E. (Eds.), Exploring positive identities and organizations: Building a theoretical and research foundation (pp. 47–76). New York: Routledge.
58.
MarkmanG.D., GianiodisP.T., & PhanP.H. (2008). Fulltime faculty or part–time entrepreneurs. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 55, 29–36.
59.
MarkmanG.D., GianiodisP.T., & PhanP.H. (2009). Supply–side innovation and technology commercialization. Journal of Management Studies, 46, 625–649.
60.
MarkmanG.D., GianiodisP.T., PhanP.H., & BalkinD.B. (2004). Entrepreneurship from the ivory tower: Do incentive systems matter?The Journal of Technology Transfer, 29(3–4), 353–364.
61.
MarkmanG.D., PhanP.T., BalkinD., & GianiodisP.G. (2005). Entrepreneurship and university based technology transfer. Journal of Business Venturing, 20, 241–264.
62.
MarkusH. & NuriusP. (1986). Possible selves. American Psychologist, 41(9), 954.
63.
MartinelliA., MeyerM., & von TunzelmannN. (2008). Becoming an entrepreneurial university? A case study of knowledge exchange relationships and faculty attitudes in a medium–sized, research–oriented university. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 33(3), 259–283.
64.
MathiasB.D. & WilliamsD.W. (2014). The impact of role identities on entrepreneurs’ evaluation and selection of opportunities. Journal of Management, doi:0149206314544747
65.
MeredithJ. (1993). Theory building through conceptual methods. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 13(5), 3–11.
66.
MertonR.K. (1957). Social theory and social structure. Revised and enlarged (2nd ed.). Glencoe, IL: Free Press.
67.
ObodaruO. (2012). The self not taken: How alternative selves develop and how they influence our professional lives. Academy of Management Review, 37(1), 34–57.
68.
Owen–SmithJ. & PowellW.W. (2001). To patent or not: Faculty decisions and institutional success at technology transfer. Journal of Technology Transfer, 26, 99–114.
69.
PetersonC. & SeligmanM.E.P. (2004). Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. New York: Oxford University Press/American Psychological Association.
70.
PhanP.H. & SiegelD.S. (2006). The effectiveness of university technology transfer. Foundations and Trends in Entrepreneurship, 2(2), 77–144.
71.
PhanP.H., SiegelD.S., & WrightM. (2009). New developments in technology management education: Background issues, program initiatives and a research agenda. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 8, 324–336.
72.
PowersJ.B. & McDougalP.P. (2005). University start–up formation and technology licensing with firms that go public: A resource–based view of academic entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Venturing, 20(3), 291–311.
73.
PrattM. (2000). The good, the bad, and the ambivalent: Managing identification among Amway distributors. Administrative Science Quarterly, 45(3), 456–493.
74.
PrattM.G., RockmannK.W., & KaufmannJ.B. (2006). Constructing professional identity: The role of work and identity learning cycles in the customization of identity among medical residents. Academy of Management Journal, 49(2), 235–262.
75.
RaiA.K. (1999). Regulating scientific research: Intellectual property rights and the norms of science. Northwestern University Law Review, 94, 77–106.
76.
RobinsonS.L. & BennettR.J. (1995). A typology of deviant workplace behaviors: A multidimensional scaling study. Academy of Management Journal, 38, 555–572.
77.
RothaermelF.T., AgungS., & JiangL. (2007). University entrepreneurship: A taxonomy of the literature. Industrial and Corporate Change, 16, 691–791.
78.
SanbergP.R., GharibM., HarkerP.T., KalerE.W., MarchaseR.B., SandsT.D., et al. (2014). Changing the academic culture: Valuing patents and commercialization toward tenure and career advancement. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 111(18), 6542–6547.
79.
ScheinV. (1978). Sex role stereotyping, ability and performance: Prior research and new directions. Personnel Psychology, 31, 259–268.
80.
SchillingM.A. (1998). Technological lockout: An integrative model of the economic and strategic factors driving technology success and failure. Academy of Management Review, 23(2), 267–284.
81.
ScottW.R. (2008). Lords of the dance: Professionals as institutional agents. Organization Studies, 29(2), 219–238.
82.
SenemeaudC. & SomatA. (2009). Dissonance arousal and persistence in attitude change. Swiss Journal of Psychology, 68(1), 25–31.
83.
ShaneS.A. (2004). Academic entrepreneurship: University spinoffs and wealth creation. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar.
84.
ShepherdA.R. (1970). Economic rent and the industry supply curve. Southern Economic Journal, 37(2), 209–211.
85.
SiegelD.S. (Ed.). (2006). Technology entrepreneurship: Institutions and agents involved in technology transfer (Vol. 1). London: Edgar Elgar.
86.
SiegelD.S., WaldmanD., & LinkA. (2003). Assessing the impact of organizational practices on the relative productivity of university technology transfer offices: An exploratory study. Research Policy, 32(1), 27–48.
87.
SomervilleM. (2002). Changing masculine work cultures. Paper presented at the Envision Practice—Implementing Change, Gold Coast.
88.
StrykerS. & BurkeP.J. (2000). The past, present, and future of an identity theory. Social Psychology Quarterly, 63, 284–297.
89.
StuartT. & DingW. (2006). When do scientists become entrepreneurs? The social structural antecedents of commercial activity in the academic life sciences. American Journal of Sociology, 112, 97–144.
90.
SwannW.B.Jr. (1987). Identity negotiation: Where two roads meet. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 53, 1038–1051.
91.
TajfelH.E. (1978). Differentiation between social groups: Studies in the social psychology of intergroup relations. London: Academic Press.
92.
ThursbyJ. & ThursbyM. (2007). University licensing. Oxford Review of Economic Policy, 23(4), 620–639.
93.
TurnerJ.C., HoggM.A., OakesP.J., ReicherS.D., & WetherellM.S. (1987). Rediscovering the social group: A self–categorization theory. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.
94.
ValdiviaW.D. (2013). University start–ups: Critical for improving technology transfer. Washington, DC: Center for Technology Innovation at Brookings.
95.
Van MaanenJ. & ScheinE. (1979). Toward a theory of organizational socialization. In StawB. (Ed.), Research in organizational behavior (Vol. 1, pp. 209–269). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
96.
WalshK. & GordonJ.R. (2008). Creating an individual work identity. Human Resource Management Review, 18(1), 46–61.
97.
WeaverG. (2006). Virtue in organizations: Moral identity as a foundation for moral agency. Organization Studies, 27, 341–368.
98.
WoodM. (2011). A process model of academic entrepreneurship. Business Horizons, 54(2), 153–161.
99.
WoodM. (2013). Improving governance arrangements for academic entrepreneurship. In ValkamaP., BaileyS., & NattriroikoT. (Eds.), Organizational innovation in public services: Forms and governance (pp. 202–220). New York: Palgrave–MacMillan.
100.
WoodM.S. (2009). Does one size fit all? The multiple organizational forms leading to successful academic entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 33(4), 929–947.
101.
YostJ.H., StrubeM.J., & BaileyJ.R. (1992). The construction of the self: An evolutionary view. Current Psychology, 11(2), 110–121.
