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The purpose of this paper is to examine the evolution of the literature on technology transfer and culture, identifying the main contents of the current body of knowledge encompassing culture and technology transfer (TT), thus contributing to a better understanding of the relationship between TT and culture based on bibliometric and multivariate statistical analyses of the relevant body of literature.

Data for this study were collected from the Web of Science (WoS) Core Collection database. Based on a bibliometric analysis and in-depth empirical review of major TT subjects, supported by multivariate statistical analyses, over 200 articles were systematically reviewed. The use of these methods decreases biases since it adds rigor to the subjective evaluation of the relevant literature base.

The exploratory analysis of the articles shows that first, culture is an important topic for TT in the literature; second, the publication data demonstrate a great dynamism regarding the different contexts in which culture is covered in the TT literature and third, in the last couple of years the interest of stimulating a TT culture in the context of universities has continuously grown.

This study focuses on culture in the context of TT and identifies the main contents of the body of knowledge in the area. Based on this first insight, obtained through more detailed bibliometric and multivariate analyses, it is now important to develop and validate a theory on TT culture, emphasizing the dimensions of organizational culture, entrepreneurial culture and a culture of openness that fosters economic and societal spillovers, and to link those dimensions to the performance of TT activities.

From the practical point of view, managers in companies and universities should be aware of the importance of identifying those dimensions of culture that contribute most to the success of their TT activities.

Despite several literature reviews on the TT topic, no studies focusing specifically on culture in the context of TT have been developed. Therefore, given the multifaceted nature of the research field, this study aims to expand and to deepen the analysis of the TT literature by focusing on culture as an important and commonly cited element influencing TT performance.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze how the sense of control, psychological ownership and motivation of both family owners and non-family managers in family firms are interrelated. This paper analyzes the limits set by family owners when delegating control to their non-family managers and the resulting potential for conflict and demotivation of the non-family managers.

Building on the existing literature, first, an overview of the literature on psychological ownership and control is presented. Second, the paper analyzes the insights gained from interviews with 15 family owners and non-family managers in five family firms.

This study finds that motivating non-family managers is not merely a matter of promoting a sense of psychological ownership throughout the company. A strong sense of psychological ownership may facilitate but also hinder the cooperation between family and non-family. Family owners are often only willing to delegate operational control, while non-family managers also feel entitled to participate in strategic decision making. This leads to the proposition that non-family managers’ psychological ownership in family firms’ conflicts with family owners’ desire to maintain control.

This study answers the calls to seek additional insight in how non-family managers function within family firms. By shedding light on the complex relationship between control, psychological ownership and motivation in family firms, the study responds to the calls for more empirical validation of the psychological ownership framework and for more research into the potential negative effects of psychological ownership in the family business.