关键词: 知识流动, 关系强度, 结构洞, 网络耦合, 研发人员类型

Abstract: Intraorganizational knowledge flows lay the foundation for innovation through which inventors integrate existing knowledge and create new knowledge. As channels for resource transfer, research and development collaboration networks, represented by relational and structural embeddedness such as tie strength and structural holes, shape the efficiency and effectiveness of knowledge flow within organizations. However, existing studies present inconsistent views on the coupling of tie strength and structural holes, and have largely overlooked its impact on knowledge flow as well as the contingent role of inventor types. To address these gaps, this paper draws on U.S. pharmaceutical patent data to examine the influence of the coupling of tie strength and structural holes on knowledge flow within organizations, and further explores the moderating effect of inventor types. The findings indicate that the coupling of tie strength and structural holes positively affects intraorganizational knowledge absorption but negatively influences intraorganizational knowledge transfer. Furthermore, such contradictory effects vary with different inventor types. In particular, the positive impact of tie strength with structural holes coupling on intraorganizational knowledge absorption of key inventors is stronger than that of general inventors. However, such relationship is opposite in intraorganizational knowledge diffusion. These findings validate the interaction between network attributes and individual attributes, providing targeted managerial implications for understanding the coupling mechanisms of network embeddedness and optimizing knowledge flow within organizations.

Key words: knowledge flow, tie strength, structural holes, network coupling, inventor types