Multinational subsidiary knowledge protection—Do mandates and clusters matter?

International knowledge spillovers, especially through multinational companies (MNCs), have recently been a major topic of academic and management debate. However, most studies treat MNC subsidiaries as relatively passive actors. We challenge this assumption by investigating the drivers of knowledge protection intensity of MNC subsidiaries. We argue that knowledge protection intensity is determined by MNC subsidiary mandates and by opportunities and risks originating from the host region. We hypothesize that not just competence-creating but also competence-exploiting mandates increase knowledge protection intensity. In addition, technological cluster regions in the host country can be expected to provide opportunities for knowledge sourcing and MNC subsidiaries may be willing to protect knowledge less intensively to participate in cluster networks. We test our hypotheses using a dataset of 694 observations of 631 MNC subsidiaries in Germany and develop recommendations for research, managers and policy makers.     

Freelancers and the absorption of external knowledge: practical implications and theoretical contributions

The term absorptive capacity (AC) describes the process of utilising external knowledge. Although firms are becoming increasingly reliant on highly skilled freelancers as a source of external knowledge, the literature on AC has not incorporated this collaboration for freelancers. In this paper, we address this research deficit in two ways: First, we argue that the ability to collaborate effectively and efficiently with freelancers plays a crucial role in the process of absorbing external knowledge. Second, we argue that the example of freelancers challenges researchers to rethink the conceptualisation of organisational boundaries within the concept of AC. Our paper is based upon previous theoretical insights and exploratory empirical data from a research project on German IT freelancers. For the practice of knowledge management, our paper elaborates upon how organisations can enhance their AC by investing in practices and routines that contribute to successful collaboration with freelancers.     

Brazilian soccer: symbolic dimensions of its practice

This essay explores the symbolic dimensions of soccer in Brazilian society from the perspective of sports anthropology. It discusses how the founding of the game was handled, in terms of stylization and standardization of rules. This, as the essay argues, would effect amplified representations in emotional regimes and adhesion to the game, thus making it a singular sports modality for understanding societies such as Brazil.     

University Knowledge Production and Innovation: Getting a Grip

Today universities are increasingly seen as motors of innovation: they not only need to provide trained manpower and publications to society, but also new products, new processes and new services that create firms, jobs, and economic growth. This function of universities is controversial, and a huge and still expanding literature has tried to understand it. The approach of this paper is integrative; it uses the existing literature to answer a number of straightforward questions about the creation of innovations with university knowledge production: how does this happen, to what extent, and if it is desirable. In this way this article grounds the issue. Creating innovation with university knowledge production is relevant, justified and important but this has not been, is not and will not become the core function of universities. The existing literature, in other words, overestimates the importance of university knowledge production - in general, and for innovation in particular.     

Dipe-D: A Tool for Knowledge-Based Query Formulation in Information Retrieval

The paper reports the development of Dipe-D, a knowledge-based procedure for the formulation of Boolean queries in information retrieval. Dipe-D creates a query in two steps: (1) the user's information need is developed interactively, while identifying the concepts of the information need, and subsequently (2) the collection of concepts identified is automatically transformed into a Boolean query. In the first step, the subject area—as represented in a knowledge base—is explored by the user. He does this by means of specifying the (concepts that meet his) information need in an artificial language and looking through the solution as provided by the computer. The specification language allows one to specify concepts by their features, both in precise terms as well as vaguely. By repeating the process of specifying the information need and exploring the resulting concepts, the user may precisely single out the concepts that describe his information need. In the second step, the program provides the designations (and variants) for the concepts identified, and connects them by appropriate operators. Dipe-D is meant to improve on existing procedures that identify the concepts less systematically, create a query manually, and then sometimes expand that query. Experiments are reported on each of the two steps; they indicate that the first step identifies only but not all the relevant concepts, and the second step performs (at least) as good as human beings do.     

Acquiring an attacking forehand drive: the effects of static and dynamic environmental conditions

Two groups of 10 novice subjects each were trained to perform attacking forehand drives in table tennis and land the balls as fast and as accurately as possible onto a target on the opposite side of the net under two different training conditions. Under the static training condition, the balls were to be struck from a constant position, and under the dynamic training condition, balls approached the subjects in a normal way. Both groups were tested under dynamic conditions prior to and after four days of training, during which they received 1,600 practice trials. Both groups of subjects were shown to increase the number of balls that landed on the target, and learning was also evident from an increased consistency of the direction of travel of the bat at the moment of ball/bat contact. However, no increase in consistency was found for the location of the bat at the moment of ball/bat contact and for the movement times. Thus, learning can occur in the absence of externally generated time-to-contact information, but this is not due to the establishment of a consistent movement form. Learning appears to progress from control at the moment of ball/bat contact backward, toward the moment of initiation.     

Two secondary teachers’ understanding and classroom practice of dialogic teaching: a case study

Dialogic Teaching (DT) is effective in fostering student learning; yet, it is hard to implement. Little research focused on secondary teachers’ learning of DT and on the link between teachers’ understanding and practices, although these two are usually strongly intertwined. Using a wide range of evidence, this case study systematically investigated and compared two secondary teachers’ understanding and practice of DT during their participation in a continuing professional development programme (CPDP). The CPDP appeared effective to some extent. The History teacher’s understanding of DT, i.e. being a co-learner, appeared highly effective in implementing DT, whereas the Mathematics teacher’s understanding of DT, i.e. creating a democratic learning environment, seemed only effective to some extent. Focusing on both teachers’ understanding and practice when developing DT seemed fruitful in explaining differences in practice. Future research could further explore to what extent understanding DT as being a co-learner facilitates professional development.