Who is tech savvy? Exploring the adoption of smartphones and tablets: An empirical investigation

The present analysis performs a Multinomial Probit Model in order to observe which mobile technology qualifies across individuals. The findings indicate that individuals in family businesses prefer to combine both tablets and smartphones in their purchases, rather than separately. Younger individuals report an adoption preference towards smartphones, while older individuals are inclined towards tablets. The theoretical contributions encompass both the technology acceptance model (TAM) and the social cognitive theory (SCT). Individuals working in a family business exhibit a curious behaviour and they are becoming early adopters. TAM helps explain this behaviour as they tend to try new novelties exploring the potential usefulness they might derive; these technological advancements allow them to connect with customers and partners. By contrast, SCT helps gain a better understanding on young and old individuals' behaviour. The younger generations seem to be easily influenced by their peers with a tendency to technologies which are fun and allow them to build connections. Older individuals are equally influenced by their peers, with the difference that their social circle being more mature (e.g., business owners, professionals). This combined with the complexity of the technology orients them into adopting tablets more easily than smartphones.     

To explore or to exploit? An empirical investigation of acquisitions by large incumbents

Innovation in high technology industries poses considerable challenges, frequently forcing firms to consider using acquisitions as a means of sourcing technology. This paper investigates such behaviour in a major high technology sector, namely the semiconductor industry. The paper focuses on differential effects of technology-related versus nontechnological acquisitions on exploratory and exploitative research and innovation. Most importantly, it confirms the important role of technology-related acquisitions for exploratory innovation.     

What drives employees to share their tacit knowledge in practice?

Tacit knowledge is internal to an individual in the form of know-how, experience or expertise. To create and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage, many companies have made substantial efforts to promote employees’ sharing of their tacit knowledge. In practice, however, tacit knowledge sharing (TKS) between employees is rare. This study empirically analyses the impacts of individual motivations and social capital on employees’ TKS in order to deepen and widen the understanding about the antecedents to employees’ TKS. Data collected from 713 employees in multiple industries were empirically tested by using structural equation modelling analysis through partial least squares. The analysis results show that anticipated intrinsic rewards and social capital positively influence employees’ TKS whereas anticipated extrinsic rewards have a negative effect on it. Furthermore, they show that employees’ attitudes, intentions and subjective norms of TKS play significant roles in linking the effects of individual motivations and social capital to employees’ TKS through a combination of expectancy theory and social capital theory based on the theory of planned behaviour. Theoretical and practical implications are presented on the basis of the major findings from this study.     

What drives scientists to start their own company?: An empirical investigation of Max Planck Society scientists

Studies on academic spin-off companies have shown that the researchers’ scientific potential, experience and established networks with other scientists or companies affect entrepreneurial activity. Most studies investigate official data such as patents and citations or qualitatively study a research group or spin-off formation. Only a few studies focus on the individual scientist. Our study fills this gap by analyzing survey interviews of 2604 scientists working for the Max Planck Society in Germany. Our empirical results indicate that the entrepreneurial activities of scientists heavily depend on patenting activity, entrepreneurial experience, and personal opinions about the benefits of commercializing research and close personal ties to industry.     

Who contributes what? Scrutinizing the activity data of 4.2 million Zhihu users via immersion scores

Studies of knowledge communities have focused predominantly on contributors who ask questions and/or post replies, while little research has examined the contributions of those who neither pose questions nor suggest answers in knowledge communities. To illuminate member contributions of various sorts, this study evaluated user contribution to knowledge community from three dimensions (influence, content-contribution, and activeness) of immersion. Based on the user activity data of more than 4 million users from Zhihu, the largest online knowledge community in China, we calculated the immersion level for the four user groups (Lurkers, Questioners, Answerers, and Questioner-Answerers) in line with their question-asking and question-answering behaviors in Zhihu. The research findings revealed that Lurkers (members who posted nothing) showed higher community-immersion score than Questioners who asked questions only. The latter, Questioners, had the lowest community-immersion score, while Questioner-Answerers, who posted both questions and answers, exhibited the greatest contribution in the case knowledge community. We further made horizontal comparison of immersion score among the four different user groups, and found that when immersion scores of the four different user groups are above a certain threshold, the immersion scores of the four different user groups display a consistent distinguishing pattern. This result highlights the similarity of tendencies in behavioral orientation among different users in knowledge communities. Theoretical contributions and practical implications to be gleaned from this research are discussed.     

Seller reputation or product presentation? An empirical investigation from cue utilization perspective

This study examines the interaction effects of two types of cues in different scopes (i.e., seller reputation as a high-scope cue and product presentation as a low-scope cue) on consumer product quality evaluation, under different involvement situations. Drawing on the cue utilization theory and involvement-related literature, we propose that cues used in people's decision making processes are contingent on product involvement. Through the conduction of behavioral experiments with eye-tracking technology, the findings show that, under high-involvement situations, both seller reputation and product presentation significantly and independently influence product quality evaluation while their interaction effect does not. While under low-involvement situations, seller reputation significantly influences the product evaluation and moderates the effect of product presentation on consumer product quality evaluation. The effect of product presentation on product evaluation is weakened by seller reputation. The findings, to some extent, are reinforced by the eye-tracking data through the trace and analysis of fixation count and fixation time. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

What makes bloggers share knowledge? An investigation on the role of trust

As a Web 2.0 technology, blogs are gaining attention as useful knowledge sharing platforms for knowledge management in a collaborative work environment. This study investigates the relationship between trust and bloggers’ knowledge sharing practices. Based on an analysis of results from the 485 survey respondents, the research found that there is the positive relationship between bloggers’ trust and their knowledge sharing practices. This study explores trust in multiple dimensions including economy-based trust, trust in bloggers, and trust in the Internet and trust in blog providers. The detailed research findings are presented.     

Who moves to the methodological edge? Factors that encourage scientists to use unconventional methods

Breaking from tradition is necessary for scientific advancement, yet we know little about the factors that encourage scientists to break from tradition in their research, particularly by using methods that are unconventional in their fields. To address this gap, we integrate the sociology of science with insights from organization theory, which delineates the evaluative advantages bestowed on those with elite status and a consistent professional identity. We use a mixed methods design. Bibliometric data on articles using three unconventional methods in sociology—Correspondence Analysis, Qualitative Comparative Analysis, and Sequence Analysis—allow us to identify which types of scholars have a greater hazard of using unconventional methods and the conditions under which these associations hold. Interviews with published, unpublished, and likely users reveal how scholars manage the career risks associated with unconventional method use. We find that scholars who are male and affiliated with top-tier universities, as well as those already committed to an identity consistent with the use of unconventional methods, have a greater hazard of using them in published work, though these associations depend on the extent to which the method diverges epistemologically from conventional methodology and the visibility of its lineage. In addition, we identify five successful (and two unsuccessful) strategies scholars use to manage their use of unconventional methods. Taken together, results from this mixed methods study advance knowledge on scientific practice, extend organization theory, and provides guidance to policymakers and administrators who aim to foster risky, path-breaking research.     

An End to Disabling Policies? Toward Enlightened Universal Service

This article argues that an enlightened, inclusive vision of universal service is possible by learning lessons from disability. Telecommunications policy has historically built in norms that needlessly exclude people who are regarded as having a disability and therefore being outside of the mainstream. Accordingly, universal service policies focus on availability and affordability of telecommunications services, rather than on their accessibility and functionality. The article shows how rethinking universal service through disability can lead to inclusive policies that benefit everybody.     

An empirical investigation of Web session workloads: Can self-similarity be explained by deterministic chaos?

Several studies of Web server workloads have hypothesized that these workloads are self-similar. The explanation commonly advanced for this phenomenon is that the distribution of Web server requests may be heavy-tailed. However, there is another possible explanation: self-similarity can also arise from deterministic, chaotic processes. To our knowledge, this possibility has not previously been investigated, and so existing studies on Web workloads lack an adequate comparison against this alternative. We conduct an empirical study of workloads from two different Web sites: one public university, and one private company, using the largest datasets that have been described in the literature. Our study employs methods from nonlinear time series analysis to search for chaotic behavior in the web logs of these two sites. While we do find that the deterministic components (i.e. the well-known “weekend effect”) are significant components in these time series, we do not find evidence of chaotic behavior. Predictive modeling experiments contrasting heavy-tailed with deterministic models showed that both approaches were equally effective in modeling our datasets.     

Who can I ask? How psychological safety affects knowledge sourcing among new product development team members

Knowledge source selection is a complex phenomenon that is often addressed from an organizational viewpoint; however, we know little about knowledge-seeking practices at the individual level. We examined knowledge sourcing in new product development (NPD) teams at the micro-level through the lens of psychological safety (PS). We investigated 1345 individuals at 85 software development teams in Pakistan to demonstrate how different levels of PS affected knowledge sourcing from three groups: within the team; within the organization; and outside the organization. Our results showed that individuals with high PS levels were more inclined to consult fellow team members and individuals with low PS levels were more likely to choose external sources. We also examined how the diversity of a team's composition affected the relationship between psychological safety and knowledge source selection. We explored the implications of these findings for managerial practice.     

How do you mean `global'? An empirical investigation of innovation networks in the multinational corporation

Literature on technological activity in the multinational corporation has recently emphasized the overall advantages from establishing internationally dispersed technological capabilities. This paper builds a taxonomy of innovation networks in the multinational corporation, differentiating between international duplication and international diversification of advanced technological capabilities. Cluster analysis of major Swedish multinationals suggests significant differences in the geographical dispersion of technological capabilities, implying different approaches to the upgrading of competitive advantage and unequal pre-conditions for becoming engaged in internationally integrated research efforts.     

What makes people watch online TV clips? An empirical investigation of survey data and viewing logs

With the decline in traditional television (TV) viewership, broadcasters are distributing TV clips online, i.e., brief, edited versions of full-length TV shows, as an alternative revenue source. Yet, there are challenges in gaining viewership of this new format, with a lack of understanding and research on what drives such viewing behavior. To fill this gap, this study draws on the theory of consumption values to develop a model explaining the decision factors that can predict online TV clip viewing behavior. We tested the model through a quantitative analysis of survey and archival (viewing logs) data from 398 viewers from a major provider of TV clips. The results indicate that, in addition to convenience and enjoyment, fandom and social viewing are unique factors predicting watching frequency and mediated by the continuance intention to watch online TV clips. Our study contributes to our understanding of the use of this new digital content format by integrating and extending concepts from the theory of consumption values. It also offers insights into how digital content providers can tap online TV clips as a revenue source.     

A question worth a million: The expert,the crowd,or myself? An investigation of problem solving

In an era of rapid technological advances, individuals have access to a plethora of open and closed forms of problem solving. We introduce and test a framework that compares different forms of problem solving and determines how individuals make choices among them. Our analyses of 4,556 problems solved by 398 individuals reveal that high problem complexity and strong implicit social norms of open exchange increase the probability that individuals will seek external solutions rather than solve the problems themselves. Our analysis also shows that they prefer individual experts (contacted directly or via open call) over aggregated crowd knowledge. We also find that strong implicit social norms of open exchange weakened the positive impact of complexity on the probability of solving problems externally. Interestingly, this effect is more subtle when the use of aggregated crowds is compared with individual experts: while strong implicit social norms strengthen the positive impact of problem complexity when experts are contacted directly, they otherwise weaken the use of open call experts. We discuss and examine the nuanced effects between problem complexity and social norms of open exchange. The study contributes to a stream of the open innovation literature that uses a problem solving perspective to better understand under what circumstances certain forms of problem solving are utilized, and it then combines it with a novel empirical setting based on real-life experimental data.     

Antirationalist critique or fifth column of scientism? Challenges from Doctor Who to the mad scientist trope

Much of the public understanding of science literature dealing with fictional scientists claims that scientist villains by their nature embody an antiscience critique. I characterize this claim and its founding assumptions as the "mad scientist" trope. I show how scientist villain characters from the science fiction television series Doctor Who undermine the trope via the programme's use of rhetorical strategies similar to Gilbert and Mulkay's empiricist and contingent repertoires, which define and patrol the boundaries between "science" and "non-science." I discuss three such strategies, including the literal framing of scientist villains as "mad." All three strategies exclude the characters from science, relieve science of responsibility for their villainy, and overtly or covertly contribute to the delivery of pro-science messages consistent with rationalist scientism. I focus on scientist villains from the most popular era of Doctor Who, the mid 1970s, when the show embraced the gothic horror genre.     

Who is willing to pay for science? On the relationship between public perception of science and the attitude to public funding of science

This article examines the relationship between the general public's understanding of science and the attitude towards public funding of scientific research. It applies a multivariate and discriminant analysis (Wilks' Lambda), in addition to a more commonly used bivariate analysis (Cramer's V), to data compiled from the Third National Survey on the Social Perception of Science and Technology in Spain (FECYT, 2006). The general conclusion is that the multivariate analysis produces information complementary to the bivariate analysis, and that the variables commonly applied in public perception studies have limited predictive value with respect to the attitude towards public funding of scientific research.     

Who are the researchers that are collaborating with industry? An analysis of the wine sectors in Chile, South Africa and Italy

Research on University-industry (U-I) linkages and their determinants has increased significantly in the past few years. However, there is still controversy on the key factors explaining the formation of U-I linkages, and especially related to individual researcher characteristics. This paper provides new empirical evidence and, in particular, looks at the importance of researchers’ individual characteristics and their institutional environments in explaining the propensity to engage in different types of U-I linkages. Based on an original dataset, we present new evidence on three wine producing areas - Piedmont, a region of Italy, Chile and South Africa - that have successfully responded to recent structural changes in the industry worldwide. Empirical findings reveal that researchers’ individual characteristics, such as centrality in the academic system, age and sex, matter more than publishing records or formal degrees. Institutional specificities at country level also play a role in shaping the propensity of researchers to engage with industry.     

What leads to post-implementation success of ERP? An empirical study of the Chinese retail industry

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems have been implemented globally and their implementation has been extensively studied during the past decade. However, many organizations are still struggling to derive benefits from the implemented ERP systems. Therefore, ensuring post-implementation success has become the focus of the current ERP research. This study develops an integrative model to explain the post-implementation success of ERP, based on the Technology–Organization–Environment (TOE) theory. We posit that ERP implementation quality (the technological aspect) consisting of project management and system configuration, organizational readiness (the organizational aspect) consisting of leadership involvement and organizational fit, and external support (the environmental aspect) will positively affect the post-implementation success of ERP. An empirical test was conducted in the Chinese retail industry. The results show that both ERP implementation quality and organizational readiness significantly affect post-implementation success, whereas external support does not. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.     

Whether western normative laboratory values used for clinical diagnosis are applicable to Indian population? An overview on reference interval

Reference Intervals denote normative values related to laboratory parameters/analytes used by diagnostic centers for clinical diagnosis. International guidelines recommend that every country must establish reference intervals for healthy individuals belonging to a group of homogeneous population. Considering enormous racial and ethnic diversity of Indian population, it is mandatory to establish reference intervals specific to Indian population. The overview on reference interval describes why the national organizations in India need to initiate nationwide efforts to establish its own laboratory standards for apparently healthy reference individuals belonging to our polygenetic, polyethnic, polyracial, multilinguistic and multicultural predominantly rural and appreciable urban Indian population with varied dietary habits.