The Multi-participant Perspective for Evaluating Technology Transfer by Using a Hybrid Multi-Attribute Decision Making Model

Abstract

—Technology transfer (TT) is a process which needs multi-participant including universities, research institutes, enterprises, and intermediary agencies to cooperate that makes it successful. However, it is devoid of the main factors within a systemic perspective to evaluate the priority and influence interrelationship among these participants. This study, therefore, focuses on the multi-participant perspective of the interrelationships of TT and proposes a hybrid multi-attribute decision making model (MADM) combing decision making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) and DEMATEL-based-analytic network process (DANP), called D-DANP model. To evaluate the causality and influence interrelationship of successful factors among the multi-participants of TT. Through the linkage effect of causality, the key factor set is identified and the goal of indirectly optimizing the efficiency of multi-participant synergy is achieved. This study first constructs a multi-level network model with the upper layer as the main participants and the lower layer as the influence attributes, applying the experts’ consultant and literature review to collect the influencing factors among participants to construct a hierarchical network for analysis. The results indicate the universities/research institutes are the main participant highly affects the other two participants which are corporations and intermediary agencies. The proposed D-DANP model is effective that can develop and improve the process that prioritizes the weights of attributes as well as makes the decision makers (DMs) have a visual cause-effect diagram for decision making and provide guidance to make sustainable improvement in the current implementation of TT. making (MADM); sustainable improvement.