Mobility, Knowledge Transfer, and Innovation: An Empirical Study on Returned Chinese Academics at Two Research Universities

Qiongqiong Chen and Yuan Li
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Qiongqiong Chen: Office of Strategic Planning and Development, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Avenue, Shenzhen 518055, China
Yuan Li: Center for Language Education, Southern University of Science and Technology, 1088 Xueyuan Avenue, Shenzhen 518055, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 22, 1-14

Abstract: This study provides an in-depth analysis of the effects of academic mobility on higher education innovation through an empirical study on returned Chinese academics at two research universities in China. Based on data obtained through document analysis and semi-structured interviews with 15 academic returnees, this paper aims to examine the everyday interactions between individual returnees and their environment, with a focus on exploring how different institutional contexts affect returnees’ capacity for integration and innovation. It finds that returned academics play an important role in promoting higher education innovation in China through mobilizing their transnational capital and resources. However, their capacity to innovate is largely subject to their working environment. Evidence from the study suggests that differing institutional contexts make a substantial difference to the reintegration experiences of returnees and to their contributions to institutional changes. This paper provides a window into the changing institutional environment in China and the academic lives of returnees there. It also provides important implications for talent policy decisions.

Keywords: academic mobility; knowledge transfer; higher education innovation; institutional environment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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