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Guided by the collective action theory, signaling theory and social identity approach, this study examines backing behavior by individuals who have created projects under CC licenses. Two motivational mechanisms were examined: (1) identification via common interests in the CC space; (2) resource signaling by other users via their diverse project creation experience, funding or commenting activity.

Data were collected from Kickstarter.com. Exponential random graph modeling was used to examine how the two reviewed mechanisms influence the tie formation probability between Creative Commons (CC) project creators and other creators. The analysis was conducted on two subnetworks: one with ties between CC creators; and one with ties from CC creators to non-CC creators.

The study found that CC creators exhibit distinct backing patterns when considering funding other CC creators compared to non-CC users. When considering funding their peer CC creators, CC identity can help them allocate and support perceived in-group members; when considering funding non-CC creators, shared common interests in competitive project categories potentially triggers a competition mindset and makes them hold back when they see potential rivals.

This study makes three contributions. First, it draws from multiple theoretical frameworks to investigate unique motivations when crowdfunders take on dual roles of creators and funders and offered implications on how to manage competition and collaboration simultaneously. Second, with network analysis our study not only identifies multiple motivators at work for collective action, but also demonstrates their differential effects in crowdfunding. Third, the integration of multiple theoretical frameworks allows opportunities for theory building.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/OIR-05-2020-0166.

The position of professions within society has long been a subject of great interest and controversy among sociologists. Currently, however, the social position of professions appears particularly worthy of study, for two reasons. First, sociologists have recently formulated a variety of frameworks of analysis which attempt to identify the means by which occupations are able to secure and maintain for themselves the privileges and power of “profession” — thereby manipulating their social position. Second, some professions are now facing significant social changes which may provide greater threats to their established positions than they have experienced in the recent past. Sociologists such as Elliott and members of professions themselves have claimed that the professions face a “crisis.” These commentators describe changes which largely concern those issues of autonomy and power that are now coming to be regarded as salient in the study of professions — changes such as a diminution of professions' control over their conditions of practice and over their established market segments. Investigation of these changes should be able to furnish evidence which is relevant to a quesiton of current sociological concern, and also provide an interpretative challenge which may help to refine existing frameworks of analysis. These considerations form the rationale for the present paper, which analyses recent changes affecting the social position of five professions in the United Kingdom and the United States. The five professions are accounting, architecture, civil engineering, law, and medicine (including dentistry).

The fundamental premises of three different models of diffusion of new technologies are described; the similarities and differences in prediction which are derivable from the three perspectives are highlighted. These perspectives include (1) diffusion of innovation; (2) technology transfer; and (3) critical mass theory. The article examines these predictions within the context of the unique social, cultural and political environments of developing countries. To illustrate the results of this approach, these theories are applied retrospectively to three technologies introduced into developing countries. They differentially explain diffusion and the subsequent use of these technologies. Implications for change management and technology policy are presented and future research is suggested.

In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.

The rational organization has long been an important tool in public administration (Weber, 1968; Simon, 1964; Alkadry, 2003). It is often identified with positive characteristics such as objectivity, expertise, efficiency, fairness and formalization. However, these same positive characteristics can contribute to a “darker side” of rational organizations. Hummel (1994) articulates this as a “bureaucratic experience” resulting from the interaction between administrators and bureaucracy, while others articulate it as the “organization man” experience. In this article, a conceptual model of the relationship between organizational rationalization and administrator experiences is developed. This model is tested using a survey of front-line administrators and a structural equation model of the relationships between these two concepts. The article concludes with a discussion of alternatives to technical rationality.

A relatively recent advance in analyzing longitudinal data, structural equation modeling with structured means, for examining the impact of organizational change and development interventions, is presented. Some of the limitations of current approaches to analyzing data collected from “experimental” and “control” groups are discussed, along with why structural modeling is particularly useful for real‐world experiments and quasi‐experiments. An illustration is then given, applying this approach to data collected from a team‐building intervention which involved 2,331 employees in 16 plants of a large garment manufacturer. Implications of the research are briefly considered.

The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the impact that trustworthiness, comprised of ability, benevolence and integrity, and perceived organizational support (POS) have on trust within a call center and warehousing organization.

A total of 105 employees are surveyed using a 37 item instrument to assess the subjects' responses to POS, trustworthiness and trust as well as demographic characteristics.

Results indicate both POS and integrity are positively related to trust. Based upon a usefulness analysis, integrity accounts for a greater amount of incremental variance in trust than POS.

The results are derived from one organization in the southern United States. While a variety of job titles and skill sets are included, the results may not be generalizable to other types of organizations or geographic areas. Also, the relatively low organizational tenure of the employees may limit the development of trust in this organization.

The main implication of this research is that the integrity of the supervisor has significant impact on the formation of trust between the employee and supervisor.

While previously investigated separately as antecedents to trust, this paper provides data on the combined effect of integrity and POS on employee trust within one organization.

Transactive memory systems (TMS) is a theory of group cognition which conceptualizes knowledge sharing and retrieval processes in groups by the use of a shared “directory”. This paper aims to review and analyze the literature and outline a set of requirements for an information system to support and facilitate TMS processes.

The author analyzed all TMS research literature in the SCOPUS and PROQUEST databases, mapping relevant observations about TMS to a TMS process model. These findings were then translated into functional requirements for a TMS information system (TMS‐IS).

A reasonable integration of information management functions into the TMS process model is possible. However, it was also found that social software functions for social networking, self‐disclosure and conversation are a necessary component of such a TMS‐IS.

The specification provides a useful consolidation of the research literature and a reliable point from which to commence design of a TMS‐IS. It is expected that basing these requirements on the research into social cognition will improve the functional fit of a TMS‐IS to group behavior and performance.

Although TMS is a cognitive theory based on knowledge sharing, there has been no analysis until now of the research literature specifically in order to derive specifications for a supporting software system.