Development of a Commercialization System of Research Findings and Determining the Knowledge of Those Involved in the Agricultural Sector of Iran

Abstract

The agricultural sector is the centrepiece of Iran's economic development and is capable of turning the nation into an industrial country. But this requires agriculture to become knowledge-intensive, whose prerequisites are the commercialization of technological achievements. The present study was carried out by a survey design to identify the effective constructs underpinning
the commercialization system of the agricultural research achievements in Iran. The statistical population was composed of faculty members and instructors of institutes for agricultural research and education (IAREs) in Iran. The sample size was determined as 190 people that were taken by the proportional random sampling technique. The face validity of the research instrument was confirmed by 10 experts of research commercialization, and its reliability was estimated by Cronbach’s alpha. The results showed the involvement of three constructs in the process of the establishment and development of commercialization, i.e.,'motivational-behavioral','structural-organizational’, and ‘contextual-environmental’. Different groups of membership in knowledge-intensive firms, membership in scientific associations, and participation in startups were significantly distinctive based on the participants’ opinions about commercialization. The level of knowledge and skills of those involved in the process of commercializing research achievements was found to be lower than average. Also according to the results, the respondents needed to be more familiar with technology transfer topics, teamwork techniques, national and international networking technology, science and technology growth parks and centres, intellectual property issues, and methods of successful commercialization of research achievements.