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1 – 10 of 13The purpose of this paper is to integrate a detailed theory of perception and action with a theory of entrepreneurship. It considers how new knowledge is developed by…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to integrate a detailed theory of perception and action with a theory of entrepreneurship. It considers how new knowledge is developed by entrepreneurs and how the level of creativity is regulated by a competitive system. It also shows how new knowledge may create value for the innovator as well as for other entrepreneurs in the system.
Design/methodology/approach
The theory builds on existing literature on creativity and entrepreneurship. It considers how transformation of mental technologies occurs at the individual and system levels, and how this transformation influences value creation.
Findings
Under a competitive system, the level of creativity is regulated by the need for new ways of doing things. Periods of crisis wherein old means of coordination begin to fail often precipitate an increase in creativity, whereas a lack of crisis often allows the system to settle to a stable equilibrium with lower levels of creativity.
Research limitations/implications
The combination of methodology and methods facilitates a description of discrete building blocks that guide perception and enable creativity. This framing enables consideration of how a changing set of knowledge interacts with a system of prices.
Practical implications
Policy makers must take care not to encumber markets with costs that unnecessarily constrain creativity, as experimentation makes the economic system robust to shocks.
Social implications
This work provides a framing of cognition that allows for a linking of agent understanding that permits explicit description of coordination between agents. It relates perception and ends of the individual to constraints enforced by the social system.
Originality/value
As far as the author is concerned, no other work ties together a robust framing of cognition with computational simulation of market processes. This research deepens understanding in multiple fields, most prominently for agent-based modeling and entrepreneurship.
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This study builds on previous survey research by the investigators (Benford, 2008), as well as anecdotal reports, which imply that, despite having social interaction and…
Abstract
This study builds on previous survey research by the investigators (Benford, 2008), as well as anecdotal reports, which imply that, despite having social interaction and communication difficulties, internet communication (via email, chat rooms, newsgroups and bulletin boards) is welcomed by some people with high functioning autism (HFA) or Asperger syndrome (AS). Qualitative data about individual experiences, perceptions, and motivations regarding internet‐based communication was obtained from 23 adults with HFA or AS, mainly via email interviewing, but also by conventional mail. Analysis based on grounded theory revealed how the sample were able to use the internet to lessen the emotional, social and time pressures experienced in offline situations. Aspects that contributed to the perception of the internet as a potentially more comfortable communication medium included visual anonymity, a different and more flexible pace of communication, and the permanence of text. Overall, the complexity of communication was lessened, and a greater sense of control could be achieved.
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Erwin Stoop, Taco Brandsen and Jan-Kees Helderman
Most research into the relationship between social capital and cooperatives takes social capital as the independent variable and the cooperative as the dependent variable, but as…
Abstract
Purpose
Most research into the relationship between social capital and cooperatives takes social capital as the independent variable and the cooperative as the dependent variable, but as yet the authors know little about causality in the other direction. The purpose of this paper is to examine whether the cooperative structure helps to maintain organizational social capital.
Design/methodology/approach
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 46 participants from local banks (chairpersons, directors, managers, team leaders and human resources managers).
Findings
Although the cooperative structure formally remained in place, integration into financial markets and digitalization effectively disembedded the organization from its original social context. The cooperative model can only remain distinctive, in terms of how it relates to its clients, under certain institutional conditions.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that scaling, in response to changes in the institutional environment, was an important factor in changing the nature of the organization.
Originality/value
The paper contributes to the understanding of the social dynamics of cooperatives in the field of financial services.
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Debates why and how some practices become universal – taking as a case in point closed‐chest massage (CCCM). Points out that CCCM was recognized in 1960 and its use generated…
Abstract
Debates why and how some practices become universal – taking as a case in point closed‐chest massage (CCCM). Points out that CCCM was recognized in 1960 and its use generated heated debates, which altered the technique and reshuffled existing infrastructures. Claims that debates act as a catalyst for university. Investigates the emergence of CCCM, the debate on the merits (or otherwise) of closed versus open‐chested cardiac massage, and who could use the method of CCCM. Indicates that CCCM only became universally practised when it was incorporated into the infrastructure for dealing with emergency cases, and thus became taken for granted.
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The recent report for the Commission of the European Communities on current multilingual activities in the field of scientific and technical information and the 1977 conference on…
Abstract
The recent report for the Commission of the European Communities on current multilingual activities in the field of scientific and technical information and the 1977 conference on the same theme both included substantial sections on operational and experimental machine translation systems, and in its Plan of action the Commission announced its intention to introduce an operational machine translation system into its departments and to support research projects on machine translation. This revival of interest in machine translation may well have surprised many who have tended in recent years to dismiss it as one of the ‘great failures’ of scientific research. What has changed? What grounds are there now for optimism about machine translation? Or is it still a ‘utopian dream’ ? The aim of this review is to give a general picture of present activities which may help readers to reach their own conclusions. After a sketch of the historical background and general aims (section I), it describes operational and experimental machine translation systems of recent years (section II), it continues with descriptions of interactive (man‐machine) systems and machine‐assisted translation (section III), (and it concludes with a general survey of present problems and future possibilities section IV).
To create a starting point for defining the processes of leading and managing in a way that enables both the separation and distinction of the concepts for study as well as the…
Abstract
Purpose
To create a starting point for defining the processes of leading and managing in a way that enables both the separation and distinction of the concepts for study as well as the integration of the concepts for practical application.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper draws on research that describes specific behaviors involved in leading and in managing; and it proposed a model that might be used to think about the integration of the two processes – leading and managing. The paper further describes the specific competencies involved in both leading and in managing.
Findings
The paper suggests that the current literature is particularly confusing as a result of the lack of agreement and specificity regarding the nature of the processes of leading and managing. The literature suffers from a proliferation of “spin off” forms of leadership – such as strategic leadership, entrepreneurial leadership, etc. – as well as from using the two terms as replacements for each other.
Originality/value
This discussion should further the research on the study of leadership competencies and leadership behaviors. It should also prove useful to those wishing to develop leadership development programs, leadership selection criteria, and more.
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The purpose of this study is threefold: to better understand what predicts individuals pro‐change behavior (PCB) and anti‐change behavior (ACB) during organizational renewal with…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is threefold: to better understand what predicts individuals pro‐change behavior (PCB) and anti‐change behavior (ACB) during organizational renewal with respect to organizational justice perceptions, given its significance for change intervention success; to identify and empirically test two new foci of organizational identification, namely manager and top management identification (TMID); and to investigate how these two new identification foci affect the relationship between various types of organizational justice and change‐oriented behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
Survey data from 137 market research employees on their perceptions of organizational distributive, procedural and interactional justice, manager and TMID and PCB and ACB were collected. Multiple hierarchical regression analysis was used for testing direct relationships between organizational justice and change‐oriented behavior and moderation effects of manager and TMID on these relationships.
Findings
The findings indicate that all types of justice predict PCB and that, in addition, interactional justice perceptions are negatively related to employees' ACB. Neither manager nor TMID had a moderating effect on the relationship between organizational justice and PCB, but both moderated the relationship between distributive justice perceptions and ACB. Moreover, identification with top management moderated the relationship between procedural justice perceptions and ACB.
Research limitations/implications
The use of self‐reported measures on PCB and ACB may present a too optimistic reflection of people's actual behavior during organizational change based on social desirability considerations in organizational research.
Practical implications
The findings contribute to a better understanding of how organizations and change agents can foster PCB and what role a psychological bond of employees with managers and an organization's top management can play during change interventions. Specifically, organizational leaders should seek both some professional and personal credentials in order to tap into the positive self‐concept element of identification and also adopt a leadership style during change which is associated with charismatic leadership behaviors. Scholars in the areas of organizational behavior and I/O psychology benefit from this study as it sheds light on the antecedents of PCB and ACB and offers two new identification foci that interact with the variables at hand.
Originality/value
The creation of manager and TMID as new foci in organizational identification research and their use as a moderating force on the relationship between both PCB and ACB is unprecedented.
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Howard Nothhaft and Hanna Stensson
The purpose of this paper is to explain the “evaluation deadlock” or “stasis” diagnosed by many authors. The explanation relies on a thought experiment.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explain the “evaluation deadlock” or “stasis” diagnosed by many authors. The explanation relies on a thought experiment.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is conceptual and builds on a thought experiment inspired by qualitative research such as interviews with communication consultants in Sweden. It makes use of principal–agent theory and Akerlof’s theory of lemon markets.
Findings
A plausible explanation for the evaluation stasis requires consideration of practitioners’ self-interest as businesspeople. The deadlock is explained by an anomaly in practitioner populations and passive or active but covert resistance. If the long-time neglect of measurement and evaluation has led to expectation inflation and overpromising, even well-performing actors might shy away from rigorous measurement and evaluation practices in their own mandates, since they fear being measured against promotional, not realistic standards. At the same time, on the level of industry discourse, these practitioners would still advocate for measurement and evaluation in principle, so as to avoid the suspicion of underperformance.
Research limitations/implications
The paper suggests an explanation for further empirical investigation. It does not attempt to demonstrate anything else than that the suggestion is plausible and that it warrants further investigation.
Practical implications
The scientific community engaged in the measurement and evaluation debate appears puzzled by the discrepancy between practitioners’ words and actions. The authors hope that the paper contributes to a more realistic and thus more constructive dialogue between practitioners and academics in the measurement and evaluation debate.
Originality/value
Inspired by Alvesson and Spicer’s concept of functional stupidity, the paper argues that attempts to explain the evaluation stasis have been marked by circumspection and narrowness. At present, explanations for the evaluation stasis tend to focus on lack of knowledge or inadequate systems or frameworks. The paper offers a more comprehensive explanation.
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Issues around informal, non-formal and formal learning, intended and unintended learning and competencies and capabilities have been considered in work-based learning (WBL)…
Abstract
Purpose
Issues around informal, non-formal and formal learning, intended and unintended learning and competencies and capabilities have been considered in work-based learning (WBL). However, demarcated modes of learning, or what can be called strategies or pedagogies of learning, associated with experience of work environments have yet to be examined. One mode of learning which has been highlighted in relation to work is reflective practice, and its centrality to learning at work has been established. But reflective practice as a core skill, and its relation to other approaches to learning and research in WBL, remains uncovered. The purpose of the present study therefore is to identify different modes of learning as they appear in the literature and to present a proto-theoretical “learning by …” model for WBL and research founded on learning by reflection.
Design/methodology/approach
Proto-theoretical modelling and qualitative descriptions of each mode of learning.
Findings
Work environments, and the higher degree WBL programmes which support them, should provide learning via every available mode of learning, thereby allowing students to find their own best orientation to learning and encourage it by any means.
Originality/value
The proto-theoretical model and 12 modes of learning applied to WBL are unique to this study. WBL provides participants of work with multiple opportunities and approaches to learn and similarly provides multiple modes through which learning can occur on the basis of knowledge and skills in reflective practice.
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The purpose of this paper is to ask whether a first‐order‐cybernetics concept, Shannon's Information Theory, actually allows a far‐reaching mathematics of perception allegedly…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to ask whether a first‐order‐cybernetics concept, Shannon's Information Theory, actually allows a far‐reaching mathematics of perception allegedly derived from it, Norwich et al.'s “Entropy Theory of Perception”.
Design/methodology/approach
All of The Entropy Theory, 35 years of publications, was scrutinized for its characterization of what underlies Shannon Information Theory: Shannon's “general communication system”. There, “events” are passed by a “source” to a “transmitter”, thence through a “noisy channel” to a “receiver”, that passes “outcomes” (received events) to a “destination”.
Findings
In the entropy theory, “events” were sometimes interactions with the stimulus, but could be microscopic stimulus conditions. “Outcomes” often went unnamed; sometimes, the stimulus, or the interaction with it, or the resulting sensation, were “outcomes”. A “source” was often implied to be a “transmitter”, which frequently was a primary afferent neuron; elsewhere, the stimulus was the “transmitter” and perhaps also the “source”. “Channel” was rarely named; once, it was the whole eye; once, the incident photons; elsewhere, the primary or secondary afferent. “Receiver” was usually the sensory receptor, but could be an afferent. “Destination” went unmentioned. In sum, the entropy theory's idea of Shannon's “general communication system” was entirely ambiguous.
Research limitations/implications
The ambiguities indicate that, contrary to claim, the entropy theory cannot be an “information theoretical description of the process of perception”.
Originality/value
Scrutiny of the entropy theory's use of information theory was overdue and reveals incompatibilities that force a reconsideration of information theory's possible role in perception models. A second‐order‐cybernetics approach is suggested.
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