Strategic alliance block stability in international technology partnering networks

The major problems addressed by this research are: (1) to identify blocks of closely linked firms engaging in technology-based alliances; (2) to measure the relative over-time stability of these blocks; and, (3) to identify factors which influence block stability. As such, the research attempts to fill a current void in the literature concerning the dynamics of macrostructures of alliances among international business firms. No previous study has examined the structure of alliance networks as they develop over time using the alliance block as the main unit of analysis. This dissertation fills that void by examining alliance blocks in eight industries over a ten-year period, involving 1,131 firms from 41 countries.;Methods developed in network analysis are used to partition alliance networks into blocks. Each block represents a sub-network of the larger alliance network in a given industry. Characteristics of these block sub-networks are measured, as are other variables which describe relevant characteristics of the blocks' composition and place within the overall industry network. Multivariate regression and Cox regression are used to test the significance of the relationship between these factors and the relative stability of the alliance blocks.;The study finds that average alliance block stability varies significantly across industry sectors, with stability being highest in the food and beverages and heavy electrical equipment manufacturing industries and lowest in the civilian aircraft manufacturing and computer hardware industries. Factors found to have a statistically significant positive relationship with alliance block stability and/or survival include the degree of centralization of alliances within the block, the size of the alliance block, and the degree of national headquarters homogeneity among firms in the block. Factors negatively associated with block stability and/or survival include the ratio of external to internal alliances in the block, and the density of alliances in the block.;Additionally, a qualitative analysis of the computer hardware industry sector, based on an examination of hundreds of articles from industry trade journals and the business press, is used to supplement the quantitative results. The implications of the results for current strategic alliance theory are explored, and suggestions for future research are made.