Giving up Linearity : Absorptive Capacity and Performance

Malte Brettel, Greta Greve, Tessa Christina Flatten · 2011 · RWTH Publications (RWTH Aachen)

Summary. This paper challenges the assumption that absorptive capacity—a firm's ability to identify, assimilate, and exploit external knowledge—has a linear relationship with performance. The authors argue that previous research has overlooked curvilinear relationships, where absorptive capacity may initially improve performance but then decline after reaching an optimal point. They contend that assuming linearity has led firms to misallocate resources and miss opportunities for better performance outcomes.

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@article{brettel-2011-giving-up-linearity-absorptive-capacity,
  title   = {Giving up Linearity : Absorptive Capacity and Performance},
  author  = {Malte Brettel and Greta Greve and Tessa Christina Flatten},
  journal = {RWTH Publications (RWTH Aachen)},
  year    = {2011},
  url     = {https://publications.rwth-aachen.de/record/160525}
}

TY  - JOUR
TI  - Giving up Linearity : Absorptive Capacity and Performance
AU  - Malte Brettel
AU  - Greta Greve
AU  - Tessa Christina Flatten
JO  - RWTH Publications (RWTH Aachen)
PY  - 2011
UR  - https://publications.rwth-aachen.de/record/160525
ER  - 

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Categories

innovation-theory, innovation-networks, general-innovation

Added

2026-04-28