Intra-company technology transfer in a multinational industrial firm

Little literature has been developed to describe the process of transferring a corporation's technology between international units of that company for ultimate transfer to their external customers (Kimberly 1981 and Leonard-Barton and Sinha 1993). This paper addresses the issues at Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. involved in the transfer of applications technology. Technology is transferred from the unit of the corporation which develops the technology to international affiliates and subsidiaries. The ultimate goal is the support of product sales to the external industrial customer. A strategy for this type of organization is described which is supported by references to theoretical constructs in the literature and empirical observations from the organization itself.     

Book reviews

The New Geopolitics of Central Asia and its Borderlands Ali Banuazizi and Myron Weiner (editors) London: I. B. Tauris, 1994, 284 pp, £39.50

The Central Asian Republics. Fragments of Empire, Magnets of Wealth Charles Undeland and Nicholas Platt New York: The Asia Society, 1994, 143 pp

Does Russian Democracy Have a Future? Stephen J. Blank and Earl H. Tilford, Jr. (editors) Pennsylvania: US Army War College, 1994, 162 pp

Between Marx and Muhammad. The Changing Face of Central Asia Dilip Hiro London: Harper Collins, 1994, 402 pp

The Boundaries of Modern Iran Keith McLachlan (editor) University College London: 1994, 150 pp

Islam and Romantic Orientalism. Literary Encounters with the Orient Mohammed Sharafuddin London: I. B. Tauris, 1994, 296 pp, £34.50

Critical Terrains. French and British Orientalisms Lisa Lowe Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1991, 216 pp, $31.85

The Art and Architecture of Islam 1250–1800 Sheila S. Blair and Jonathan M. Bloom Yale University Press, New Haven and London: 1994, biblio, 280 pp, £45

Culinary Cultures of the Middle East Sami Zubaida and Richard Tapper (editors) London: I. B. Tauris, 302 pp, biblio, index, £34.50     

Homophobia and the Transition to Adulthood: A Three Year Panel Study among Belgian Late Adolescents and Young Adults, 2008–2011

Studies on homophobia among adolescents routinely depart from the assumption that this attitude will be continued into adulthood. However, little research has been conducted on how the transition toward adulthood actually affects homophobia. While earlier studies relied on cross-sectional observations, the present analysis makes use of the Belgian Political Panel Survey (2008-2011), tracking 2,815 respondents (52?% female, 48?% male) between the ages of 18 and 21. A conditional change model shows that while men had substantially higher levels of homophobia than women to begin with, this difference grew even larger throughout the observation period. The discrepancy between Muslim respondents and those with other religions became larger as well. Overall, the gender and religious differences already present in adolescence had become further polarized at the end of the observation period. Friendship relations with persons with a different sexual orientation, on the other hand, significantly reduced prejudice, especially among men, while the results also show that changes in the level of homophobia are related strongly to conservative views on gender roles. We conclude that groups that already display high levels of homophobia during adolescence are likely to grow even more extreme in their views in the transition to adulthood.