INNOVATION IN VIRTUAL WORLDS: SOCIAL STRUCTURE AND DIFFUSION

This research-in-progress paper investigates the impact of social structures in virtual worlds (VWs) on the diffusion of innovations within them. Research has illustrated that innovation diffusion takes place within virtual worlds. VWs facilitate the emergence of purposeful communities which support the (often real-world) activities of their members including the development and adoption of innovations. Thus, VWs alter the social structures in which their users are embedded and the manner in which they communicate, both of which are thought to influence the diffusion of technical innovations amongst individuals. Though technical innovation is at the heart of Information Systems (IS) research, empirical research investigating innovation in the networked age is in its infancy. Thus, this paper presents a framework of propositions in relation to the impact of social structures on the diffusion of innovations within VWs and proposes the use of social network analysis to investigate these propositions

INNOVATION CO-CREATION IN A VIRTUAL WORLD

The emergence of web-based technologies has radically influenced the ways in which individuals around the world communicate, represent themselves, share ideas, and otherwise interact with one another (Ward and Sonneborn, 2009; Rogers, 2003). In particular, these technologies allow people to communicate directly with one another and to share and shape their own experiences; as a result, customers and other organisational stakeholders are increasingly involved in the design of products and services (Ramaswamy and Gouillart, 2010, p. 102). During innovation co-creation specifically, customers take an active and creative role in the intentional and successful adoption and application of ideas, processes, products or procedures that are new to the adopting organization. This study carries out six case studies of innovation co-creation in the virtual world of Second Life. Virtual worlds allow users to engage in highly active and participatory forms of co-creation that are difficult if not impossible to replicate in other environments. The study explores collaborative processes used for innovation co-creation in virtual worlds. In particular, the study presents an analysis of behaviours used to facilitate innovation co-creation in virtual world projects and the factors that affect it. The study leverages this analysis to derive practical recommendations for virtual world users and virtual world designers that can be used to stimulate and support innovation co-creation in virtual worlds

Social context and sex moderate the association between type D personality and cardiovascular reactivity

peer-reviewedType D personality has been consistently associated with adverse cardiovascular health with atypical cardiovascular reactions to psychological stress one plausible underlying mechanism. However, whether this varies by sex and social context has received little attention. This study examined the interaction between Type D personality, sex and social context on cardiovascular reactivity to acute stress. A sample of 76 healthy undergraduate students (47 female) completed the DS14 Type D measure, before undergoing a traditional cardiovascular reactivity protocol. The social context of the laboratory environment was manipulated to create a social and non-social context using a between-subjects design. Systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and heart rate (HR) were monitored throughout. No associations were evident for blood pressure. However, a significant personality × sex × social context interaction on HR reactivity was found; here Type D was associated with a higher HR response to the social task amongst males but not females, while Type D females typically exhibited blunted reactions. While these atypical reactions indicate a possible psychophysiological pathway leading to adverse cardiovascular events amongst Type Ds, it appears that Type D males are particularly vulnerable to socially based stressors, exhibiting exaggerated cardiovascular reactions.peer-reviewe

The genetic architecture of the human cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex underlies our complex cognitive capabilities, yet little is known about the specific genetic loci that influence human cortical structure. To identify genetic variants that affect cortical structure, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 51,665 individuals. We analyzed the surface area and average thickness of the whole cortex and 34 regions with known functional specializations. We identified 199 significant loci and found significant enrichment for loci influencing total surface area within regulatory elements that are active during prenatal cortical development, supporting the radial unit hypothesis. Loci that affect regional surface area cluster near genes in Wnt signaling pathways, which influence progenitor expansion and areal identity. Variation in cortical structure is genetically correlated with cognitive function, Parkinson's disease, insomnia, depression, neuroticism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Harnessing the innovative potential of knowledge in the digital enterprise

21st European Conference of Information Systems (ECIS), Utrecht, Netherlands, 5-8 June 2013The open, flexible affordances of pervasive digital technologies have fundamentally altered the nature of organisational innovation. In the extreme, these technologies become platforms for digitally enacted organisational innovation. At its core, innovation is a process of creating and using new ideas and concepts. In the digital realm innovation becomes a process of enacted knowledge creation. This research contributes to a growing discourse on the relationship between innovation and knowledge creation by building and testing a hybrid model of organisational knowledge creation and innovation. Its findings illustrate the utility of using knowledge-based perspectives to investigate organisational innovation and have significant implications for fostering digital innovation in the firm.

Innovation Co-Creation In A Virtual World

21st European Conference On Information Systems, Barcelona, Spain, 8-10 June, 2012The emergence of web-based technologies has radically influenced the ways in which individuals around the world communicate, represent themselves, share ideas, and otherwise interact with one another (Ward and Sonneborn, 2009; Rogers, 2003). In particular, these technologies allow people to communicate directly with one another and to share and shape their own experiences; as a result, customers and other organisational stakeholders are increasingly involved in the design of products and services (Ramaswamy and Gouillart, 2010, p. 102). During innovation co-creation specifically, customers take an active and creative role in the intentional and successful adoption and application of ideas, processes, products or procedures that are new to the adopting organization. This study carries out six case studies of innovation co-creation in the virtual world of Second Life. Virtual worlds allow users to engage in highly active and participatory forms of co-creation that are difficult if not impossible to replicate in other environments. The study explores collaborative processes used for innovation co-creation in virtual worlds. In particular, the study presents an analysis of behaviours used to facilitate innovation co-creation in virtual world projects and the factors that affect it. The study leverages this analysis to derive practical recommendations for virtual world users and virtual world designers that can be used to stimulate and support innovation co-creation in virtual worlds

The Road Less Travelled: A New Perspective On Sustained Competitive Advantage Through Knowledge Creation

European Conference On Information Systems, Barcelona, Spain, 10 - 13 June, 2012Knowledge and intellectual capital have become the primary bases upon which organisations construct their core competencies and are increasingly seen as the key to superior organisational performance (Lubit, 2001). At the same time, both the need to and difficulty associated with developing sustainable competitive advantages are rapidly increasing (ibid.). This paper argues that two roads lead to sustained competitive advantage in firms. The well-travelled road is largely based on conceptualising knowledge in terms of information and data and attempting to leverage organisational knowledge by focusing on the management and utilisation of information in organisations. The road less travelled is based on recognising the power of knowledge in general, and knowledge creation in particular, to stimulate creativity and innovation in organisations leading to sustained competitive advantage. On this road, it is recognised that truly innovative organisations 'do not simply process information… they actually create new knowledge and information, from the inside out, in order to redefine both problems and solutions and, in the process, to re-create the environment' (Nonaka and Takeuchi, 1995, p.56). Despite the promise of the road less travelled, existing perspectives on knowledge creation are beset with a variety of epistemological and methodological problems. This paper develops a new perspective on knowledge creation by delving into existing conceptualisations and classifications of knowledge in literature, exploring the philosophical assumptions upon which they are based, probing the conceptual and methodological issues that surround these views and articulating a new perspective on knowledge creation to guide future research efforts