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The purpose of this paper is to provide new insights for managing knowledge reuse in terms of the duality of innovator personality. Continuously developing new products is crucial for firms to maintain and enhance their competitive advantages. However, the limited and highly specialized knowledge can cause innovators of firms to face difficulties in the process of new product development (NPD). In this setting, knowledge reuse becomes a solution that may benefit innovators to overcome the innovation dilemma. Given the fact that innovators with different personality are likely to form incongruent cognitions and affection on knowledge reuse, thus subsequently affecting the performance of NPD, there is an urgent need to investigate the effects of innovator personality in the entire process of knowledge reuse.

This paper exploits five-factor model (FFM) of personality to comprehensively investigate the dual effects of innovator personality in managing knowledge reuse based on the two distinct sets of knowledge reuse initiation and implementation.

By using the data from 981 innovators of knowledge-intensive firms in China, this study finds that the FFM traits of conscientiousness and agreeableness had opposing effects on initiation and implementation of knowledge reuse. While the FFM traits of emotional stability and openness to experience both positively affect the knowledge reuse initiation and implementation. Moreover, the FFM traits of extraversion benefit the shaping of knowledge reuse initiation whereas encumbering the implementation of knowledge reuse.

First, this study reveals the different roles of cognitive and affective traits of personality in shaping knowledge reuse. Second, this study exposes the role of innovator personality in determining the performance effects of knowledge reuse implementation. Third, this study highlights the dual effects of innovator personality in managing knowledge reuse. This study offers evidence for arranging the innovators with appropriate FFM traits in various stages of knowledge reuse.

People can be taught certain managerial technologies, but not the fundamental human traits that convert the employment of those technologies into organizational results. An adult’s leadership capacity is virtually fixed by the time he or she arrives at the corporate doorstep. Simply put, people do not change much once they enter the corporate world and the changes that do occur are mainly due to a consolidation of inherent strengths.

The identification of consumer innovators offers marketing managers the opportunity to tailor new products to the buyers who initiate the diffusion of innovations. Progress has been made in identifying such consumers in economic and social terms, but there are advantages of cost and convenience in isolating the personality profiles of innovators, during pre‐launch product testing. However, innovative consumer’s personality traits proved elusive. Reports an investigation of innovative brand choice in the context of new food purchasing employing the Kirton Adaption‐Innovation Inventory (KAI). This test of cognitive style correlates with several personality traits associated with innovativeness; it also has high validity in the prediction of behaviour. The research investigated the predictive validity of the KAI over a range of product continuity/discontinuity. The results suggest an operational measure of product continuity/discontinuity and supports the use of the KAI as a marketing tool.

The identification of consumer innovators offers marketing managers the opportunity to tailor new products to the buyers who initiate the diffusion of innovations. Progress has been made in identifying such consumers in economic and social terms, but there are advantages of cost and convenience in isolating the personality profiles of innovators, especially during pre‐launch product testing. But innovative consumers' distinctive personality traits have proved elusive. This article reports an investigation of innovative brand choice in the context of new food product purchasing which employed the Kirton Adaption‐Innovation Inventory (KAI). This highly reliable test of cognitive style correlates with several personality traits known to be associated with innovativeness; it also has high validity in the prediction of behaviour over a wide range of contexts. The research reported went beyond the common expectation of a simple, direct relationship between personality and brand choice to investigate the predictive validity of the KAI over a range of product continuity/discontinuity. The results are considerably more encouraging than those of earlier research for the identification of personality/consumer choice links. They suggest an operational measure of product continuity/ discontinuity and support the use of the KAI as a viable marketing tool.

The purpose of this paper is to advance and clarify conceptualisations of innovative and entrepreneurial individuals through the analysis of their personality traits.

This study has elements of both theory testing and theory creation, which led the authors to choose the case study as their research strategy. The “case” is an innovative and entrepreneurial individual, and the authors used extreme‐type empirical cases to develop ideal‐type concepts. The analysis is based on extensive longitudinal data.

The study makes a contribution to theories of both entrepreneurship and innovation. It adds conceptual clarity in terms of providing evidence that the individuals concerned should not be considered as one characteristic group of actors. The authors propose that highly innovative and entrepreneurial individuals can be further divided to entrepreneurial innovators and innovative entrepreneurs.

This study may enable the colleagues, business partners and competitors of entrepreneurial innovators and innovative entrepreneurs to better understand – and to some extent also to forecast – their behaviour. It also gives some hints regarding cooperation opportunities with both types of individual, and getting the most out of them. The results should also help policy makers and support agencies to recognise these people, who play an important role in the economy.

To the authors’ knowledge this study is the first to analyse the traits of individuals who are both extremely innovative and highly entrepreneurial.

Reviews empirical studies examining psychological characteristics of innovation. States that the literature was delved into to analyse characteristics which are relevant. Evaluates and discusses the various literature sources and suggests various advantages and disadvantages therein. Concludes that, though difficult, the need for the future is: more studies using the same psychological inventory across many products; more studies on the same product using many psychological inventories.

This paper explores the relevance of the concept of self in the process of independent technological innovation. In‐depth interviews were conducted with technological innovators from start‐up firms in IT, biotech and advanced services concerning the subjective and social forms of engagement in the innovation process. Emerging factors in the interview data revealed aspects pertaining to the innovator’s reflexive self‐conception, innovator ego‐involvement in the venture, forms of commitment and control, personal and social stakes, and various self‐oriented cognitive strategies. It is argued that the self‐concept allows the innovator to come into view as a social and subjective being who is involved in reflexive activities such as dynamic role‐taking, “is” vs “ought” reflections and social negotiations.

This study concerns consumer responses to new product offerings in the category of high‐tech audio equipment. For the purposes of the study, consumers were categorised as high‐innovators or non‐innovators. The general objective of the research was to determine how differing groups of consumers view innovativeness, and how innovativeness is assessed, with particular reference to high‐tech product offerings. The research was carried out in two stages; a series of focus groups was run to determine the dimensions of the problem, and a questionnaire derived from this. The questionnaire was then administered to visitors at a consumer‐oriented trade show. Statistical analysis of the questionnaire revealed that there are significant differences between groups of consumers regarding the relative importance of various factors in the process of assessing innovativeness.

To assist marketing management in the identification and targeting of consumer innovators for novel products by selectively reviewing and integrating three separate streams of research, namely, trait theory, utility‐awareness theory and contemporary cognitive theory.

A range of traditional and contemporary research concerned with the identification of consumer innovators is selectively reviewed and critiqued to enhance marketing management's ability to identify and target the consumer innovator segment. This research, which is addressed under three main sections: personal characteristics, utility‐awareness and cognitive structures, is then integrated to provide management with a more comprehensive approach by which to identify and target consumer innovators. Particular emphasis is placed on the contribution of recent cognitive theories.

The trait dependent approaches in particular, are found to be of limited usefulness in that they identify consumer innovators only retrospectively after initial adoption, as opposed to operating in a predictive manner. It is argued that an approach based upon consumer utility‐awareness, and the more cognitively orientated analogical learning and embedded knowledge structure approaches can provide management with increased control over the process of new product adoption within a target population.

This paper provides management with a new insight into the identification of the consumer innovator by integrating three existing, but somewhat disparate theoretical approaches, and suggests amore comprehensive model for this task.

To explore information behavior from a psychological perspective by relating information seeking to personality traits and study approaches.

The research design was quantitative and consisted of statistical analysis of three questionnaires, i.e. the NEO Five‐Factor Inventory measuring personality, the ASSIST test measuring approaches to studying, and a questionnaire regarding information behavior. A total of 305 university students who were in the process of writing a Master's thesis responded to the questionnaires.

Three information‐seeking patterns – fast surfing, broad scanning and deep diving – emerged from the statistical analyses. Fast surfing could be related to a surface study approach and emotionality, as well as to low openness to experience and low conscientiousness. Broad scanning was linked to extraversion, openness, and competitiveness, whereas deep diving was a search pattern typical of analytical students with a deep and strategic study approach.

The results are based on descriptions of behaviour, not actual observations. Although the statistical results were significant, generalisable conclusions would have required more convincing figures. Further research is recommended in order to explore the three search styles in other populations and contexts.

Information‐seeking behaviour has not previously been studied in relation to the five‐factor model, which is regarded as the most modern personality theory to date. Understanding of the psychological reasons behind different information‐seeking styles is important for a holistic view of information behavior. These insights are valuable for researchers interested in user behavior as well as for practitioners like teachers and information professionals.