Science, technology and the state: Understanding the American and the Japanese, theories, policies, practices and mechanisms of science and technology transfer

America and Japan have developed effective paradigms for science and technology transfers, resulting in their reduction of scarcity, liberation of diverse human potentials and transformation into premier scientific and technological states. This study sought to understand effective factors and develop a model for science and technology transfer from both.;Hence, the research used historiography, current position documents, in-depth interviews, personal observations, and grounded theory to compare and contrast science and technology transfer programs in five pairs of similar American and Japanese institutions: The US President's Office and the Japanese Prime Minister's Office; the US Department of Commerce and the Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Tokyo University; the Johns Hopkins University and Tohoku University; American Telegraph and Telephone and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone.;The focus of this comparison was to test the extent of the presence of ten propositions assumed to influence effective science and technology transfers: Human Resource, Organizational Theory, Facilities, Institutional Environment, Philosophical Outlook, Governmental Support, Foreign Support, Industrial Support, Academic Support and Leitmotif.;MIT displayed the highest degree of presence of these propositions. Regarding the quality of inventions and high-technology products, the Japanese cases performed better because of their philosophical outlook, industrial support, customer sensitivity and foreign support.;Whereas the US cases emphasized military and prestigious programs, the Japanese emphasized education and economic ones. While the United States industrial policy is made by the President, Congress, the US Trade Representative, plus the Departments of Defense, Energy, State and Commerce (the only one with direct industry/market linkage, but hampered by weak industrial support), the Japanese industrial policy is formulated mainly by MITI which enjoys direct and continuous industry/market linkage and tremendous industrial support. Whereas foreign support for US science and technology declined from 1948 to the present, it expanded for Japanese cases from 1868 to the present time.;Though ten promising approaches are proposed for effective institutional science and technology transfer programs, use of pertinently trained workforce is critical, as also is vesting of educational and industrial policies in high quality multidisciplinary team who should enjoy industrial support and government/science and emerging technologies/industries/market partnerships.