Despite the growing importance of online communities in creating knowledge and facilitating collaboration, there has been limited research examining the role of leaders in such settings. In this ...paper, we propose a framework that integrates behavioral and structural approaches to explore the antecedents of leadership in online communities focused on knowledge work. Specifically, we propose that sociability and knowledge contribution behaviors as well as structural social capital lead to being identified as a leader by members of the online community. We test this framework using social network, survey, and message-level content analysis data collected from three different online communities focused on technical topics. The results from our zero inflated negative binomial models, with 6,709 messages from 976 individuals, provide strong support for the framework that is developed in this study. Our study contributes to both theory and practice by identifying the behavioral and structural antecedents of leadership in online communities.
Electronic networks of practice are computer-mediated discussion forums focused on problems of practice that enable individuals to exchange advice and ideas with others based on common interests. ...However, why individuals help strangers in these electronic networks is not well understood: there is no immediate benefit to the contributor, and free-riders are able to acquire the same knowledge as everyone else. To understand this paradox, we apply theories of collective action to examine how individual motivations and social capital influence knowledge contribution in electronic networks. This study reports on the activities of one electronic network supporting a professional legal association. Using archival, network, survey, and content analysis data, we empirically test a model of knowledge contribution. We find that people contribute their knowledge when they perceive that it enhances their professional reputations, when they have the experience to share, and when they are structurally embedded in the network. Surprisingly, contributions occur without regard to expectations of reciprocity from others or high levels of commitment to the network.
Electronic networks of practice are computer-mediated social spaces where individuals working on similar problems self-organize to help each other and share knowledge, advice, and perspectives about ...their occupational practice or common interests. These interactions occur through message postings to produce an on-line public good of knowledge, where all participants in the network can then access this knowledge, regardless of their active participation in the network. Using theories and concepts of collective action and public goods, five hypotheses are developed regarding the structural and social characteristics that support the online provision and maintenance of knowledge in an electronic network of practice. Using social network analysis, we examine the structure of message contributions that produce and sustain the public good. We then combine the results from network analysis with survey results to examine the underlying pattern of exchange, the role of the critical mass, the quality of the ties sustaining participation, the heterogeneity of resources and interests of participants, and changes in membership that impact the structural characteristics of the network. Our results suggest that the electronic network of practice chosen for this study is sustained through generalized exchange, is supported by a critical mass of active members, and that members develop strong ties with the community as a whole rather than develop interpersonal relationships. Knowledge contribution is significantly related to an individual's tenure in the occupation, expertise, availability of local resources and a desire to enhance one's reputation, and those in the critical mass are primarily responsible for creating and sustaining the public good of knowledge. Finally, we find that this structure of generalized exchange is stable over time although there is a high proportion of member churn in the network.
Business models that rely on social media and user-generated content have shifted from the more traditional business model, where value for the organization is derived from the one-way delivery of ...products and/or services, to the provision of intangible value based on user engagement. This research builds a model that hypothesizes that the user experiences from social interactions among users, operationalized as personalization, transparency, access to social resources, critical mass of social acquaintances, and risk, as well as with the technical features of the social media platform, operationalized as the completeness, flexibility, integration, and evolvability, influence user engagement and subsequent usage behavior. Using survey responses from 408 social media users, findings suggest that both social and technical factors impact user engagement and ultimately usage with additional direct impacts on usage by perceptions of the critical mass of social acquaintances and risk.
Open innovation models suggest that an organization's end users can be a potentially beneficial source for new ideas and innovations. However, incorporating end users raises some interesting ...challenges regarding how to balance the decision making power between a firm and the user community. Using Diffusion of Innovation Theory, we propose hypotheses based on the perceived attributes of end user ideas and end user promotion efforts. Our findings suggest that the decision to adopt a user innovation was based on the ability of the firm to understand the technical requirements and respond to community concerns regarding the innovation.
Within the medical community there is persistent debate as to whether the information available through social media is trustworthy and valid, and whether physicians are ready to adopt these ...technologies and ultimately embrace them as a format for professional development and lifelong learning.
To identify how physicians are using social media to share and exchange medical information with other physicians, and to identify the factors that influence physicians' use of social media as a component of their lifelong learning and continuing professional development.
We developed a survey instrument based on the Technology Acceptance Model, hypothesizing that technology usage is best predicted by a physician's attitudes toward the technology, perceptions about the technology's usefulness and ease of use, and individual factors such as personal innovativeness. The survey was distributed via email to a random sample of 1695 practicing oncologists and primary care physicians in the United States in March 2011. Responses from 485 physicians were analyzed (response rate 28.61%).
Overall, 117 of 485 (24.1%) of respondents used social media daily or many times daily to scan or explore medical information, whereas 69 of 485 (14.2%) contributed new information via social media on a daily basis. On a weekly basis or more, 296 of 485 (61.0%) scanned and 223 of 485 (46.0%) contributed. In terms of attitudes toward the use of social media, 279 of 485 respondents (57.5%) perceived social media to be beneficial, engaging, and a good way to get current, high-quality information. In terms of usefulness, 281 of 485 (57.9%) of respondents stated that social media enabled them to care for patients more effectively, and 291 of 485 (60.0%) stated it improved the quality of patient care they delivered. The main factors influencing a physician's usage of social media to share medical knowledge with other physicians were perceived ease of use and usefulness. Respondents who had positive attitudes toward the use of social media were more likely to use social media and to share medical information with other physicians through social media. Neither age nor gender had a significant impact on adoption or usage of social media.
Based on the results of this study, the use of social media applications may be seen as an efficient and effective method for physicians to keep up-to-date and to share newly acquired medical knowledge with other physicians within the medical community and to improve the quality of patient care. Future studies are needed to examine the impact of the meaningful use of social media on physicians' knowledge, attitudes, skills, and behaviors in practice.
ABSTRACT
With the global penetration of Internet technologies, individuals may now cross organizational boundaries to communicate efficiently with others regardless of time and space. Thus, when ...looking for help in solving work tasks, knowledge workers may just as easily contact individuals in rival firms across the globe as a coworker sitting at the next desk. As a result, management faces questions such as (1) How should firms manage employees' knowledge‐sourcing activities when they span both intra‐organizational and extra‐organizational boundaries, and (2) What is the relationship between different knowledge‐sourcing activities and individual performance? Grounded in the knowledge‐based view of the firm, we investigate these questions using data from Europe's largest information technology (IT) services and management consulting company. Our results provide evidence that organizations should support boundary spanning and knowledge sourcing from both internal and external sources. Results suggest (1) a positive relationship between boundary spanning communication and creativity and general performance, and (2) a negative relationship between a reliance on colocated coworkers as knowledge sources and creativity.
Studies investigating individual performance in knowledge-intensive work are finding that individual performance is a result, to some degree, of obtaining the right information to solve novel, ...challenging problems. Yet we know little about the role that the individual plays in the knowledge processes in multinationals and the relationship between individual knowledge sourcing activities and performance. Our expectation is that successful knowledge transfer will be based on an individual's intrinsic motivation, access to knowledge from explicit or tacit knowledge sources within and across firm boundaries, and position in the overall advice network of the multinational corporation. Using survey and social network data collected in one multinational consulting firm, we investigated the knowledge sourcing activities and informal advice networks for 1439 of the entire 1698 individuals in one multinational spread across 28 offices (84.7% response rate). Through hierarchical regression analysis we find that 1) intrinsic motivations are strongly related to creativity and efficiency and 2) MNCs should support individual level activities that include not only the use of internal knowledge sources but also the use of
external knowledge sources. Research results also suggest that 3) there are different patterns of knowledge sourcing activities based on whether efficient or creative performance is the goal and 4) these differ significantly depending upon the functional group to which the individual belongs. Implications for theories of the knowledge-based view of the multinational corporation and practical implications for managers are discussed.
Beyond gaming Hooker, Robert; Wasko, Molly; Paradice, David ...
Information technology & people (West Linn, Or.),
12/2019, Letnik:
32, Številka:
6
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to test flow as a construct distinctly separate from its antecedents, and the resulting impact on brand attitudes and purchase intent within realistic online ...shopping three-dimensional virtual environments (3-DVEs).
Design/methodology/approach
This research utilizes a field study, combined with a survey research design of 348 3-DVE participants.
Findings
The findings reveal that flow is not a unidimensional construct but rather, a mental state that should be measured separately from its antecedents, with the possibility that certain antecedents may be more relevant than others in different activities. Furthermore, the authors received strong support for the overarching hypothesized model separating the nine dimensions associated with engagement in an activity as antecedents of flow, which, in turn, influences brand attitude and thereafter purchase intention.
Research limitations/implications
This study was limited to one type of activity within one 3-DVE but is balanced by the difficulty in gaining access to organizations and computer-mediated environments of this type for examining such phenomena.
Practical implications
Businesses using 3-DVEs to market brands should focus their efforts on creating highly enjoyable experiences that result in the feeling of a loss of sense of time for the participants in order to ultimately positively influence purchase intentions.
Originality/value
Prior research focused on fantasy-based, game-oriented environments, while also neglecting to test all elements of flow, examining “similar to flow” constructs or measuring flow as a unidimensional construct.
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