The utilization of competing technologies within the firm

This paper examines the role of technological status in determining the rates at which competing techniques are used within a firm. Consistent with prior studies, technological status is measured on the basis of an actor's prior contributions to the body of knowledge concerning a given technique. The empirical analysis considers two treatments for coronary artery disease (CAD), eachof which is associated with a distinct professional group within a hospital. These two groups are often characterized as engaging in a "turf war" for patients. After controlling for several factors that might explain technological choice the clinical severity of patients, the relative quality of the two procedures at a given facility, firm-level financial performance, and other firm-level characteristics I find that the technological status of the group associated with each technique affects the relative rate at which it is used within agiven hospital. These results suggest that viewing the choice between competing innovations as a single, firm-level decision may not always capture the true dynamics underlying such a situation.