Organizational Decision-making in the Appropriation of Technological Innovation: Cognitive and Political Dimensions

Abstract

Outcomes of innovation may depend upon the user's decision processes in its appropriation. The context for the user's decision-making comprises three interdependent elements: (1) the innovation pool; (2) the user; and (3) the supplier of the innovation. User decisions are seen as a series of four interlocking decision episodes. During the first two episodes (agenda formation and selection) the problem is defined and a solution chosen. In the latter two episodes (implementation and usage) the innovation is adopted and used. Appropriation may depend on dual modification of the innovation and organizational practices until the innovation meets the unique requirements of the user. Cognitive and political variables relevant to technological innovation are suggested and explored by drawing upon qualitative comparisons across seven cases of technological innovation in British manufacturing firms. Particular problems occur when users have inadequate knowledge bases, overuse heuristics and analogies, and have conflicting beliefs about the chosen innovation. The extent to which cognitive variables impose on success with the innovation may be mediated by political processes, and may also interact with national culture. Focus is on the processes during the early episodes of agenda formation and selection on the grounds that problems engendered here carry over to implementation.     

The maintenance of cultural stereotypes in the conversational retelling of narratives

Interpersonal communication plays a significant role in the maintenance of culturally shared stereotypes. This paper reports on two experiments in which two different stories were transmitted conversationally through communication chains. In both experiments, people tended to emphasize more stereotype consistent than stereotype inconsistent (SI) information, thus rendering the stories more confirming, rather than challenging, of the stereotypes. Although SI information sometimes attracted more attention in conversation, this did not translate into a greater likelihood of passing on SI information, thus keeping the story character's impression largely stereotypical even after a second retelling of the story.     

Mediators in psychological treatment of social anxiety disorder: Individual cognitive therapy compared to cognitive behavioral group therapy

According to cognitive-behavioral models of social anxiety disorder (SAD), four of the important maintaining mechanisms are avoidance, self-focused attention, anticipatory processing and post-event cognitive processing. Individual cognitive therapy (ICT) and cognitive behavioral group therapy (CBGT) both have substantial empirical support. However, it is unclear whether they achieve their effects by similar or different mechanisms. The aim of this study was to investigate whether changes in the four maintenance processes mediate clinical improvement in ICT and CBGT for SAD. We analyzed data from participants (N = 94) who received either ICT or CBGT in two separate RCTs. The results showed that ICT had larger effects than CBGT on social anxiety and each of the four potential mediators. More pertinently, moderated mediation analyses revealed significant between-treatment differences. Whereas improvement in ICT was mainly mediated by reductions in avoidance and self-focused attention, improvement in CBGT was mediated by changes in self-focused attention and in anticipatory and post-event processing. These results support the importance of the putative mediators, but suggest that their relative weights are moderated by treatment type.     

Coping strategies and first year performance in postsecondary education

Coping was hypothesized to explain additional variance in first year grade point averages (GPAs) controlling for cognitive ability and conscientiousness. First year GPAs were assessed as criterion for performance in the first year. Results indicate active coping, denial, behavioral disengagement, and alcohol disengagement are related to first year GPA. Denial and alcohol disengagement coping strategies were significant predictors and negatively related to first year GPA in the final regression equation controlling for cognitive ability and conscientiousness. Latent growth modeling analysis demonstrated cognitive ability predicted both the intercept and slope of first year GPA. Conscientiousness was a predictor of initial GPA but not change. Lastly, coping was a significant predictor of change in GPA. Implications for research and theory are discussed.     

A Comparison of Primary Alcoholics,Secondary Alcoholics,and Nonalcoholic Psychiatric Patients on the MacAndrew Alcoholism Scale

The MacAndrew Alcoholism (MAC) and Sc scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) were examined in four groups of 20 male patients. Comparisons were made among primary alcoholics, secondary alcoholics (i.e., alcoholic psychiatric patients), nonalcoholic psychiatric patients (mixed diagnoses), and conservatively defined, nonalcoholic schizophrenics. Primary alcoholics scored higher on the MAC scale than did secondary alcoholics and other groups; schizophrenics scored lower than all other groups. Primary alcoholics were lower on the Sc scale than schizophrenics but did not differ from other groups. The results support MacAndrew's (1981) distinction between primary and secondary alcoholics and suggest that the MAC scale may enhance differentiation among diagnoses other than alcoholism.     

Prompt Density,Rate of Reinforcement,and the Persistence of Manding

The Psychological Record - Previous research has documented the effects of prompting mands at a relatively high rate (i.e., rich schedule) or low rate (i.e., lean schedule). These previous studies...     

Construing action abstractly and perceiving consonance among goal pursuits: Implications for activity substitutability and the accessibility of activity-goal links

Findings from five experiments show that high-level action construals, due to either increase in temporal distance or to self-regulatory mindsets, facilitate consonance among subjective evaluations of separable goal pursuits. In Experiments 1 and 2, evaluations of progress toward separable goals were more strongly related among participants in abstract-mindset and future-focus conditions than in concrete-mindset and present-focus conditions. Results of Experiments 3 and 4 were consistent with the proposal that modulating the accessibility of relations between one’s goals and one’s broader aims is the mechanism by which level of action construal impacts perceived goal correspondence. Finally, results of Experiment 5 show that viewing an activity as linked to one’s goals increases the activity’s perceived substitutability. Implications for action representation and self-concept structure are discussed.     

BDSM: A Subcultural Analysis of Sacrifices and Delights

This is a qualitative investigation of 73 individuals in the Bondage and Discipline, Dominance and Submission, and Sado-Masochism subculture. There is tremendous stigma attached to this subculture, and while the academic community may be increasingly accepting, the general public is not as accepting or knowledgeable. Fear of negative consequences means that many engage in secrecy and concealment strategies as protective measures. Although there is much literature on the possible consequences and the reasons for concealment, there remain gaps. Our findings reveal how many conceal to cover up or to hide what outsiders may consider immoral or otherwise unacceptable behavior. Others conceal as a means to create a distinction for themselves as part of a secret subculture. Whatever their reasons, those in this subculture engage in a variety of strategies to manage their identity and to minimize their vulnerability.