Exploring the comparative effects of societal syndromes on knowledge discovery in new product-process development : contrasting Anglo-Western society and Han-Chinese society
- Publication Type:
- Thesis
- Issue Date:
- 2012
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International marketers must learn how to match product and process transformation requirements to localised cultural predispositions, as not all cultures are equally disposed towards novel innovation or improving existing technologies.
In this thesis, the original unification of prior histological investigations and first application of quantitative analyses of reflective and structural equation models, newly confirmed that a comprehensive understanding of cultural predispositions in society at large and in the workplace, is necessary and indispensable, in guiding the rightful assignment of global new product-process development tasks. Moreover, the affiliation between cultural antecedents and final product-process outcomes was shown not to be a direct relationship, as formerly assumed: Instead, cultural predispositions, based on newly revealed societal syndromes, were unmistakably found to act to foster or impede knowledge building (i.e., knowledge sharing and creative synergies) and knowledge discovery. Thus, in this thesis, for the first time, knowledge building was unambiguously shown to; intermediate the relationship between cultural antecedents and final new product-process development outcomes.
Key societal models, established in this exploratory research, were developed for multiple cross-societal applications. However, for first measurement, significant to the twenty-first century product and process development, Anglo-Western society and Han-Chinese society were selected to test an original societal syndrome archetype comprised of the primary dimensions of Vertical Power Ethos, Horizontal Altruism and Conventional Orthodoxy. ‘First measures’ were made, in ‘seminal’ and quantitatively exploratory research, to reveal Han-Chinese general superiority in replicating known technologies and making minor incremental changes to enhance known technologies. Alternatively, Anglo-Western society was typically more talented in developing first generation (often high transformation) or intermediate transformation product-processes, which require higher levels of lateral knowledge sharing and involvement of out-groups.
Extensive structural equation modelling confirmed original societal syndromes. A new intermediation primary path model and accompanying moderators were statistically validated. Armed with a new knowledge of societally-based predilections, towards either progressing highly novel product-process innovation or forms of innovation aimed at improving traditional practices; based on particular needs, global companies, with various products and components, such as Boeing Inc. and 3M, can now benefit, from a more informed basis for assignment of their product-process development tasks.
Unifying socio-cultural studies and histological accounts enabled study of cultural antecedents, providing a more integrated theoretical qualitative discipline-wide model than previously available. Development of a dynamic structural design (archetype) comprised of original societal syndromes, elucidates for theorists the relationships of societally qualified syndromes on knowledge building across multiple disciplines
From the perspective of cross-societal dispositions, concerning products and processes, future researchers should study the implications of profitability and new research commitment, on original innovation vis-à-vis cultivating accepted approaches. New transnational cross-societal equity corporate relationship types could be progressed, to concurrently achieve benefit, in both creative product-process innovation and existing product-process generation improvement, across societies in joint-venture relationships, by leveraging societally localised advantages globally.
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