1st Edition
The Adoption and Diffusion of Imported Technology The Case of Korea
This book considers the problems that developing countries face when importing technology from abroad. The major issues - technical, economic, political - are analysed in the case of one particular country: Korea. The book describes the negotiations with the foreign companies that controlled the desired technology, the building of the plants, the training of engineers and managers to replace expatriots, the improvements of processes and products and the maintenance of efficient and profitable production. In their research the authors were given access to information usually kept confidential - government memoranda and minutes, company contacts and records, costs and prices. The book also considers how typical of the developing countries Korea is, and the authors make certain policy recommendations for the future.
Biography
J.L. Enos, Fellow and Tutor in Economics, Oxford University UK.
`The book as a whole is a rewarding read and above all bears out Vaitsos' (1975) contention that, particularly in the early stages of development, government intervention in the negotiation of techological contracts would help to secure the conditions for effective transfer and absorption.' - Science, Technology and Development
`..well written, and presents its subject matter in an accessible way. It helps to clarify the major trends in economic thought, in particular the debate over Japanese capitalism, whose impact on economists and economic historians is hard to comprehend in the West....it goes a long way towards indicating the richness of its topic, and will be of considerable interest in economic thought and the economic development of Japan.' - Pacific Review
