Szociológia | Szervezetszociológia » Medini Bhandari - Organizational Sociology and Organization Network

Source: http://www.doksinet Organizational Sociology / Organization Network Important Note: Please note that the following abstracts, notes and summaries are directly taken (copied) from the various books and from the journals articles on the organization sociology available on the websites. Medini Bhandari Annotated bibliography of on organizational sociology (networks) Abrahamson, E., & Rosenkopf, L 1997 “Social Network Effects on the Extent of Innovation Diffusion: A Computer Simulation,” Organization Science, 8: 289-309. Abstract: Theories of innovation diffusion no longer focus exclusively on explaining the rate at which innovations diffuse or the sequence in which they are adopted. They also focus on explaining why certain innovations diffuse extensively, becoming de facto standards, whereas others do so partially or not at all. Many of these theories specify a bandwagon process: a positive feedback loop in which increases in the number of adopters create stronger

bandwagon pressures, and stronger bandwagon pressures, in turn, cause increases in the number of adopters. Factors affecting if and how many times this feedback loop cycles explain if and how many potential adopters jump on a bandwagon. We argue that one important factor has not yet been incorporated into theories explaining bandwagons extent: the structure of social networks through which potential adopters of innovations find out information about these innovations which can cause them to adopt these innovations. We advance a theory of how the structure of social networks affects bandwagons extent. We propose that both the number of network links, as well as small, seemingly insignificant idiosyncracies of their structures, can have very large effects on the extent of an innovations diffusion among members of a social network. Almeida, P., & Kogut, B 1997 “The exploration of technological diversity and the geographic localization of innovation,” Small Business Economics, 9:

21-31. Abstract: This paper examines the innovative ability of small firms in the semiconductor industry regarding their exploration of technological diversity and their integration within local knowledge networks. Through the analysis of patent data, we compare the innovative activity of start-up firms and larger firms. We find that small firms explore new technological areas by innovating in less crowded areas. The analysis of patent citation data reveals that small firms are tied into regional knowledge networks to a greater extent than large firms. These findings point to the role of entrepreneurial firms in the exploration of new technological spaces and in the diffusion of their accumulated knowledge through local small firm networks Atkinson, M. M, Bierling, G 1998 "Is there convergence in provincial spending priorities?," Canadian Public Policy, 24: 71-89. Abstract: This article examines the question of whether the provinces are becoming increasingly similar in their

total spending and in the level of spending devoted to particular functional areas. Using various measures of spending, we begin by briefly tracing the pattern of provincial spending between 1971 and 1994. We then show, using Dispersion Indexes, that in some areas there has been a persistent movement toward similar levels of spending and similar spending priorities, while in other areas a divergent or indeterminate pattern has been established. Of some importance is the fact that particular provinces are outliers or influential cases and as such have the capacity to influence significantly the degree of convergence observed. In addition, the 24-year period is not one unbroken pattern In some cases the provinces reverse their initial convergent direction and become increasingly different from one another. We suggest some reasons for these patterns, including the role of federal-provincial fiscal relations and the impact of changing economic conditions. Medini Bhandari 1 Source:

http://www.doksinet Bennett, C. J 1997 "Understanding ripple effects: The cross-national adoption of policy instruments for bureaucratic accountability," Governance, 10: 213-233. Abstract: This article examines different explanations for the cross-national diffusion of three recent innovations in bureaucratic accountability-the institution of the ombudsman, freedom of information legislation and data protection (information privacy) law. The first two explanations are based on the assumption that these innovations are by-products of modernization, either the growth of the state or democratization. The third assumes that policy is shaped through processes of international communication A combination of methodologies is employed to conclude that while the growth of government and liberal democratic values are necessary conditions for the adoption of all three policy instruments, they are not sufficient conditions. The pattern of adoption observed is best explained by examining

how evidence about these respective policies flows from adopting states to non-adopters. In the case of the ombudsman, this process can be characterized as one of lesson-drawing; for freedom of information, evidence is used for legitimation purposes; for data protection, the diffusion is attributable to harmonization through international organizations. Policy transfer is hence a multi-faceted concept that embraces a number of distinct processes of transnational learning and communication. Bernstein, S., & Cashore, B 2000 “Globalization, four paths of internationalization and domestic policy change: The case of eco-forestry in British,” Canadian Journal of Political Science, 33: 67-99. Abstract: Confusion over how forces from beyond state borders affect domestic policy occurs because analysts often conflate different nondomestic factors, or focus on particular sources of influence to the exclusion of others. To remedy this problem, the authors make a distinction between the

structural economic forces associated with rising levels of trade, finance and investment (globalization), and the increased activities or influence of transnational actors and international institutions, and the ideas they promote (internationalization). A focus on how transnational actors and international institutions influence domestic policy reveals four distinct pathways through which internationalization produces policy change-the use of markets, international rules, normative discourse and infiltration of domestic policymaking processes. The authors develop hypotheses to show the conditions under which influence is successfully achieved along each path. The case of ecoforestry policy change in the 1990s in Canadas Pacific Coast province, British Columbia, is used to illustrate the validity of the hypotheses. Barua, A., C H S Lee, & A B Whinston 1995 “Incentives and Computing Systems for TeamBased Organizations,” Organization Science, 6: 487-504 Abstract: Facing

increasingly complex tasks involving coordination, communication and interactions among multiple decision makers, organizations are undergoing transition, experimenting with new forms such as the team-based structure, and investing heavily in network-based computing to support team activities. We take the position that for the new form to succeed, and for computing investments to pay off, the organizational designer must consider complementarities effects between incentives, IS design, and organizational and task characteristics, Since these factors impact group performance through complex interactions, a change in one factor necessitates changes in others. We develop a stylized, analytical model of group/team interactions involving computing support, and study the impact of various design factors and their interactions on group productivity. Key research issues include the choice of a team/group reward structure, the impact of team composition and computing system features on the

overall payoff, incentives for monitoring peers and their effect on group output, the time allocation of group members between peer monitoring and task effort, and the effect of task interdependence on monitoring incentives. The theoretical model provides a set of propositions showing how interactions between the chosen reward system, system design features and organizational factors determine members behavior (e.g, the extent of free riding and shirking) and subsequently the organizational payoff These results provide broad qualitative implications for designing incentive schemes and information systems for appropriating maximum organizational value in team-based environments. Medini Bhandari 2 Source: http://www.doksinet Chen, S. 1997 “A new paradigm for knowledge-based competition Building an industry through knowledge sharing,” Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 9: (4) 437-452. Abstract: A common assumption in traditional strategic management thinking is that

competitive success may be achieved by the creation and protection of firm-specific factors, either favourable market positions, as in industrial organization-based frameworks, or unique resources, such as intellectual property and tacit knowledge, as in resource-based frameworks. This paper long-term trends in technology, industries and society, this paradigm is no longer appropriate for modern knowledge-based industries, particularly emerging high-technology industries. In these industries technologies and firms are increasingly interconnected in a complex web of interactions, and the main task of strategic management is one of managing technological and industry co-evolution. Complexity theory is used to identify mechanisms and strategies for creating sustainable technological communities and industries. Choi, J. P 1997 “Herd behavior, the penguin effect, and the suppression of informational diffusion: An analysis of informational externalities and payoff interdependency,” Rand

Journal oof Economics, 28: 407-425. Abstract: This article analyzes a technology adoption process in which the effect of informational spillover interacts with network externalities. The interplay of informational externalities and payoff interdependency induces risk-averse and clustering behavior in the technology-adoption process. The analysis differs from the herd behavior literature in focusing on how the herd behavior of subsequent users influences the initial adoption decision. Moreover, herd behavior in this article stems form each agents desire to inhibit the revelation of new information that can be used in a way detrimental to her, rather than from each agents effort to free-ride on information contained in the decisions made by predecessors. Coleman, W. D, & Grant, W P 1998 "Policy convergence and policy feedback: Agricultural finance policies in a globalizing era," European Journal of Political Research, 34: 225-247. Abstract: In a comparative study of five

countries: Australia, Canada, the Republic of Ireland, the UK, and the USA, this article examines the degree of convergence of agricultural credit policy content, policy instruments, and policy outcomes on a market liberal model. It shows that all five countries have moved toward market liberal policy arrangements over the past quarter century of globalizing and domestic fiscal pressures, but important differences in policy remain. The Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom move further toward a market Liberal model than do Australia, Canada, and the USA. The distinct national paths taken to market liberalism give rise to policy feedback that hastens or retards the adoption of a fully market liberal system. Historical choices of policy instruments and path dependence help account for continuing policy divergence. Coleman, W. D, & Perl, A 1999 "Internationalized policy environments and policy network analysis," Political Studies, 47: 691-709. Abstract: The importance

of horizontal coordinating governance arrangements in the internationalized policy domains that occur more frequently in the present globalizing era justifies building further on middle-level theories that draw on the policy community/policy network concepts. This reconceptualization, however, requires an explicit integration of policy paradigms and political ideas into policy community theory and careful attention to the differential impact of varying governance patterns in internationalized policy domains. This article pursues these objectives beginning with a review of existing literature on policy communities and policy networks. Next, drawing on recent research on policy paradigms and political ideas, it suggests how policy community concepts might be adapted for the study of policy change. Four types of internationalized policy environments are then identified and their implications for policy communities and policy networks are assessed. The article concludes by Medini Bhandari

3 Source: http://www.doksinet introducing the concept of policy community mediators and discussing how they might shape the relationships among multiple policy communities. Source: World of Science, http://wos.isiglobalnetcom/CIWcgi?378111 4FAB9108&Func=Abstract&doc=22/62&PR=0/2 Darr, E. D, & Kurtzberg, T R 2000 "An investigation of partner similarity dimensions on knowledge transfer," Organization Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 82: 28-44. Abstract: Learning from the experiences of others can provide significant benefits for an organization, but it can be difficult to know who has the most useful or applicable knowledge. Knowledge is acquired from many sources: from within the firm; from other firms; or from competitors, customers, suppliers, and channel partners. Managers must decide how to efficiently search through a universe of potential knowledge sources to select the knowledge that will be the most useful to them. This research examines the

conditions under which partner similarity enhances knowledge transfer. Previous research has argued that partner similarity influences knowledge sharing through attraction. Building on past work, our research argues that attraction is only one mechanism by which partner similarity affects knowledge transfer and introduces the idea that partner similarity aids the search through a universe of potential knowledge sources. The dimensions of partner similarity that allow more efficient search will facilitate knowledge transfer, while those similarity dimensions that do not aid search will have a less important impact on transfer. Data from both quantitative and qualitative sources support these hypotheses Quantitative analyses show that strategic similarity emerges as a more important dimension than customer or location similarities as a significant predictor of knowledge transfer. Qualitative interview data show that businesses are conscious of the strategic similarities within their

industry and choose transfer partners accordingly. (C) 2000 Academic Press Dolowitz, D. P 1997 "British employment policy in the 1980s: Learning from the American experience," Governance, 10: 23-42. Abstract: During the 1980s the Thatcher Government implemented numerous changes to the British employment system. Most of these changes had the effect of linking the receipt of welfare benefits to an individuals willingness to participate actively within a government sponsored employment or training scheme. These changes culminated in the Social Security Act (1989) which linked the receipt of welfare payments to an individuals active job search and willingness to accept any officially offered job after a maximum grace period of 13 weeks. While these changes are important in their own right, move interestingly, most trace their origins back to the American welfare-to-work system initiated by the Reagan administration during the early 1980s. This article will demonstrate why the

Thatcher government turned to the United States in the development of their employment policy. Once an explanation for this has been provided the article will highlight the key policies transferred by the Thatcher Government in the development of the British welfare-to-work system. This entire analysis will be placed within a policy transfer framework in order to illustrate its usefulness in the analysis of policy development. Dolowitz, D. P, & Marsh, D 2000 "Learning from abroad: The role of policy transfer in contemporary policy-making," Governance, 13: 5-24. Abstract: In recent years there has been a growing body of literature within political science and international studies that directly and indirectly uses, discusses and analyzes the processes involved in lesson-drawing, policy convergence, policy diffusion and policy transfer. While the terminology and focus often vary, all of these studies are concerned with a similar process in which knowledge about policies,

administrative arrangements, institutions and ideas in one political setting (past or present) is used in the development of policies, administrative arrangements, institutions and ideas in another political setting. Given that this is a growing phenomenon, it is something that anyone studying public policy needs to consider. As such, this article is divided into four major sections The first section briefly Medini Bhandari 4 Source: http://www.doksinet considers the extent of, and reasons for, the growth of policy transfer. The second section then outlines a framework for the analysis of transfer. From here a third section presents a continuum for distinguishing between different types of policy transfer. Finally, the last section addresses the relationship between policy transfer and policy "failure." Dyer, J.H, & K Nobeoka 2000 Creating and managing a high-performance knowledge-sharing network: The Toyota case, Strategic Management Journal, 21: 345-367. Abstract:

Previous research suggests that knowledge diffusion occurs more quickly within Toyotas production network than in competing automaker networks. In this paper we examine the black box of knowledge sharing within Toyota’s network and demonstrate that Toyotas ability to effectively create and manage network-level knowledge-sharing processes at least partially explains the relative productivity advantages enjoyed by Toyota and its suppliers. We provide evidence that suppliers do learn more quickly after participating in Toyota’s knowledge-sharing network. Toyotas network has solved three fundamental dilemmas with regard to knowledge sharing by devising methods to 1) motivate members to participate and openly share valuable knowledge (while preventing undesirable spillovers to competitors), (2) prevent free riders, and (3) reduce the costs associated with finding and accessing different types of valuable knowledge. Toyota has done this by creating a strong network identity with rules

for participation and entry into the network Most importantly, production knowledge is viewed as the property of the network. Toyotas highly interconnected, strong tie network has established a variety of institutionalized routines that facilitate multidirectional knowledge flows among suppliers. Our study suggests that the notion of a dynamic learning capability that creates competitive advantage needs to be extended beyond firm boundaries Indeed, if the network can create a strong identity and coordinating rules then it will be superior to a firm as an organizational form at creating and recombining knowledge due to the diversity of knowledge that resides within a network. De Cremer, D., & M Van Vugt 1999 “Social identification effects in social dilemmas: a transformation of motives,” European Journal of Social Psychology, 29: (7) 871-893. Abstract: Three experimental studies were conducted to examine two alternative explanations for the widely established positive effect of

social identification in promoting cooperation in social dilemmas. We hypothesized that social identification effects could be either ascribed to (1) an increase in the value assigned to the collective good (i.e goal-transformation hypothesis) or (2) an enhancement of trust in the cooperation of other group members (i.e goal-amplification hypothesis) To disentangle these two explanations, we examined the effects of social identification on the contributions to a public good of people with a different social value orientation (i.e pre-existing differences in preferred outcome distribution between self and others). Following the goal transformation hypothesis, we predicted that increased group identification would raise contributions, in particular for people essentially concerned with their personal welfare (i.e pro-self value orientation) Alternatively, following the goal amplification hypothesis it was expected that increased group identification would primarily affect decisions of

people concerned with the collective welfare (i.e, proposal value orientation) The results of all three studies provided support for the goal-transformation rather than goal-amplification hypothesis, suggesting that selfish individuals can be encouraged to cooperate by increasing the salience of their group membership. Evans, M., & Davies, J 1999 "Understanding policy transfer: A multi-level, multi-disciplinary perspective," Public Administration, 77: 361-385. Abstract: At the same time that comparative and international political scientists have been confronting the problems of analyzing state behavior under conditions of uncertainty, state-centered political scientists are attempting, somewhat belatedly, to deal with the increasing complexity and uncertainty which underpins modern governance. Yet despite similar research agendas these disciplines have continued to speak past each other. This article contends that policy transfer analysis can provide a context for

integrating some key concerns of these disciplines. Further, we argue that the process of policy transfer Medini Bhandari 5 Source: http://www.doksinet should be examined through a structure and agency approach with three dimensions: global, international and transnational levels, the macro-level and the interorganizational level. This three-dimensional model employs the notion of a policy transfer network as a middle-range level of analysis which links a particular form of policy development (policy transfer), micro-decision making in organizations, macrosystems and global, transnational and international systems. It is hoped that this approach will stimulate an empirical research agenda which will illuminate important policy developments in domestic and world politics. Fulk, J., A J Flanagin, M E Kalman, P R Monge, & T Ryan 1996 “Connective and communal public goods in interactive communication systems,” Communication Theory, 6: 60-87. Abstract: This paper extends

theories of public goods to interactive communication systems. Two key public communication goods are identified. Connectivity provides point-to-point communication, and communality links members through commonly held information, such as that often found in databases. These extensions are important, we argue, because communication public goods operate differently from traditional material public goods. These differences have important implications for costs, benefits, and the realization of a critical mass of users that is necessary for realization of the good. We also explore multifunctional goods that combine various features and hybrid goods that link private goods to public ones. We examine the applicability of two key assumptions of public goods theory to interactive communication systems. First, jointness of supply specifies that consumption of a public good does not diminish its availability to others. Second, impossibility of exclusion stipulates that all members of the public

have access to the good. We conclude with suggestions for further theoretical development Gaines, B. R, & M L G Shaw Distributed Knowledge Modeling through the World Wide Web, Knowledge Science Institute, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 1N4, {mildred. gaines}@cpsc.ucalgaryca, (http://ksi.cpscucalgaryca/articles/AAAI96/KMWWW/KMWWWhtml) Abstract: Knowledge modeling involves the management of many knowledge sources often geographically distributed. The World Wide Web is a distributed hypermedia system available internationally through the Internet. It provides general-purpose client-server technology which supports interaction through documents with embedded graphic user interfaces. This article reports on the development of knowledge modeling tools operating through the web to support knowledge acquisition, representation and inference through semantic networks and repertory grids. It illustrates how web technology provides a new knowledge medium in which artificial

intelligence methodologies and systems can be integrated with hypermedia systems to support the knowledge processes of professional communities world wide. Haunschild, P. R, & A S Miner 1997 Modes of interorganizational imitation: The effects of outcome salience and uncertainty,” Administrative Science Quarterly, 42: (3) 472-500. Abstract: Drawing on neoinstitutional and learning theories, we distinguish three distinct modes of selective interorganizational imitation: frequency imitation (copying very common practices), trait imitation (copying practices of other organizations with certain features), and outcome imitation (imitation based on a practices apparent impact on others). We investigate whether these imitation modes occur independently and are affected by outcome salience and contextual uncertainty in the context of an important decision: which investment banker to use as adviser on an acquisition. Results of testing hypotheses on 539 acquisitions that occurred in

1988-1993 show that all three imitation modes occur independently, but only highly salient outcomes sustain outcome imitation, Uncertainty enhances frequency imitation, but only some trait and outcome imitation. The results highlight the possible joint Medini Bhandari 6 Source: http://www.doksinet operation of social and technical indicators in imitation, illuminate factors that moderate vicarious learning processes, and show symmetries between learning from success and failure. Hays, S. P 1996a “Influences on reinvention during the diffusion of innovations," Political Research Quarterly, 49: 631-650. Abstract: This study considers how states change policy innovations as they diffuse. This process, known as reinvention, has been the subject of recent innovation diffusion research (Mooney and Lee 1995; Glick and Hays 1991). This paper examines the role of controversy in structuring the nature of reinvention, creating a more fully specified model of the causes of reinvention.

This research is a comparative analysis of the evolution of provisions of three policy innovations: child abuse reporting laws, crime victim compensation law, and public campaign finding laws. The data show that varying levels of controversy affect the nature of policy reinvention and that reinvention results from a combination of social learning, political characteristics, and contextual factors. Hays, S. P 1996b “Patterns of reinvention: The nature of evolution during policy diffusion," Policy Studies Journal, 24: 551-566. Abstract: This study considers how states change policy innovations ar they diffuse. This process of policy evolution during diffusion, known as reinvention. has been the focus of recent work on innovation diffusion in the states (Clark, 1985; Click, 1992; Click & Hays, 1991, Mooney & Lee, 1995). This manuscript focuses on differences in the patterns of reinvention for three different policy innovations with different rates of diffusion: child abuse

reporting laws, crime victim compensation laws, and public campaign funding laws. Moreover, how the pattern changes after states amend their initial laws is examined. The data show evidence of reinvention during diffusion but provide only limited support for the first hypothesis that the pattern of reinvention is one of increasing comprehensiveness over time. Consistent with expectations, the data reveal little relationship between the date of adoption and the current laws comprehensiveness, including amendment. Hutt, M. D, E R Stafford, B A Walker, & P H Reingen 2000 “Case study - Defining the social network of a strategic alliance,” Sloan Management Review, 41: (2) 51-. Abstract: Strategic alliances are assuming increasing prominence in the strategy of leading firms, large and small. Yet many alliances fail to meet expectations because little attention is given to nurturing the close working relationships and interpersonal connections that unite the partnering organizations.

This case study follows the strategic alliance between two Fortune 500 firms (referred to as Alpha Communications and Omega Financial Services) as they developed a cobranded product. It explores the social architecture of the alliance and identifies the communication patterns that united the participants and the beliefs that divided them. The researchers gathered data from the entire network of alliance participants, including the core team and a cadre of senior executives in the two firms. The result is a vivid and comprehensive portrait of the intricate web of relationships that formed in this alliance and the flow of communications within and across the partnering organizations. The interviews in the study revealed, for example, that fears of ulterior motives preoccupied managers on both sides, leading to a lack of trust. There was also a perceived imbalance in the degree of importance that each partner assigned to the alliance. One appointed senior managers, the other lower revel

managers, which led to significant pacing issues. Although managers in both firms agreed that the alliance made sense, inattention to the inner workings revealed bothersome incompatibilities. The firms different personnel structures also contributed to high levels of frustration. Omega used a centralized approach to control the outward flow of information, whereas Alpha used a decentralized approach. The researchers findings suggest that positive personal connections are crucial to the success of a partnership. Initial negotiations and senior management advocacy set the tone for the alliance, galvanizing support and promoting effective interpersonal ties. A well-integrated communication and work-flow network is required within and across the firms, so firms must carefully select team members who will match in rank and expertise those from Medini Bhandari 7 Source: http://www.doksinet the partnering organization. Regularly auditing the evolving ties between the organizations is

valuable in gauging alliance health. Hubner, H. 1996 "Decisions on innovation and diffusion and the limits of deregulation," Technovation, 16: 327-339. Abstract: Governments in Western Europe are currently assigning responsibilities for functions of high societal importance to private groups under the slogan Deregulation and privatization. Identical principles are applied in former communist countries in Eastern Europe, based on the thesis that only freemarket mechanisms will guarantee most benefits for all groups of society. Against this thesis, governments in most industrialized states have established so-called national innovation systems, formed by government-owned or -supported research institutions and measures supporting the innovation abilities of companies, since competition in innovation has become the most important kind of competition on company level and between national economies. The main aims of the article are to reach an understanding of mechanisms and

responsible actors for generation and diffusion of innovation within a society and (national) economy; to demonstrate problems and impacts of unreflected deregulation and privatization on society and national economy, to show that unreflected deregulation and privatization is not in conformity with, but opposed to, economic theory as founded by Adam Smith; and to derive consequences and measures necessary for coordination within an economically developed society. The research methodology includes the use of an explanatory model, demonstration of examples, partly based on our own research, exegesis, and logical final conclusion. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd Kerr N. L, & C M Kaufman 1994 “Communication, Commitment, and Cooperation in Social Dilemmas,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 66: 513-529 Abstract: Intragroup communication promotes cooperation in social dilemmas. Two explanations are plausible: Discussion may (a) enhance feelings of group identity

or (b) induce commitments to cooperate. Some remedies for social dilemmas (like group communication) may be sub classified as public-welfare remedies (of which enhanced group identity is an example) versus cooperation-contingent remedies (of which commitment is an example). The efficacy of a cooperative act for enhancing the collective welfare should moderate remedies of the former but not the latter type. An experiment is reported in which group communication and the efficacy of cooperation were manipulated. As expected if communication induced commitments, but contrary to the group identity explanation, efficacy did not moderate the effect of group discussion. Other analyses provided more direct evidence that group members made and honored commitments to cooperate. Kogut, B., & Zander, U 1992 “Knowledge of the firm, combinative capabilities, and the replication of technology,” Organization Science, 3: 383-397. Abstract: How should we understand why firms exist? A prevailing

view has been that they serve to keep in check the transaction costs arising from the self-interested motivations of individuals. We develop in this article the argument that what firms do better than markets is the sharing and transfer of the knowledge of individuals and groups within an organization. This knowledge consists of information (e.g, who knows what) and of know-how (eg, how to organize a research team) What is central to our argument is that knowledge is held by individuals, but is also expressed in regularities by which members cooperate in a social community (i.e, group, organization, or network) If knowledge is only held at the individual level, then firms could change simply by employee turnover. Because we know that hiring new workers is not equivalent to changing the skills of a firm, an analysis of what firms can do must understand knowledge as embedded in the organizing principles by which people cooperate within organizations. Medini Bhandari 8 Source:

http://www.doksinet Based on this discussion, a paradox is identified: efforts by a firm to grow by the replication of its technology enhances the potential for imitation. By considering how firms can deter imitation by innovation, we develop a more dynamic view of how firms create new knowledge. We build up this dynamic perspective by suggesting that firms learn new skills by recombining their current capabilities. Because new ways of cooperating cannot be easily acquired, growth occurs by building on the social relationships that currently exist in a firm. What a firm has done before tends to predict what it can do in the future. In this sense, the cumulative knowledge of the firm provides options to expand in new but uncertain markets in the future. We discuss at length the example of the make/buy decision and propose several testable hypotheses regarding the boundaries of the firm, without appealing to the notion of "opportunism." Kogut, B., & Zander, U 1995

“Knowledge and the speed of the transfer and imitation of organizational capabilities – an empirical test,” Organization Science, 6: 76-92. Abstract: The capabilities of a firm, or any organization, lie primarily in the organizing principles by which individual and functional expertise is structured, coordinated, and communicated. Firms are social communities which use their relational structure and shared coding schemes to enhance the transfer and communication of new skills and capabilities. To replicate new knowledge in the absence of a social community is difficult. A classic demonstration is the well-studied problem of the transfer across country borders of manufacturing capabilities that support production of new product innovations. We show in this article that the degree of codification and how easily capabilities are taught has a significant influence on the speed of transfer. What makes the question of knowledge codification particularly interesting is that firms

compete not only through the creation, replication, and transfer of their own knowledge, but also through their ability to imitate the product innovations of competitors. The capacity to speed the internal transfer of a production capability to new markets (e.g, those in other countries) is, consequently, of fundamental significance in a competitive environment. In the attempt to speed the internal transfer of knowledge, the dilemma arises that capabilities which can be easily communicated within the firm are more likely to be easily imitated by competitors. This relationship is tested by analyzing the effects of the ease of codifying and communicating a manufacturing capability not only on the time to its transfer, but also on the time to imitation of the new product. The determinants of the time to imitation are found to be the extent to which knowledge of the manufacturing processes is common among competitors, and the degree of continuous recombination of capabilities leading to

improvement of the product or the manufacturing process. We support this interpretation by a discussion of the results from field research. A wider implication of these findings is the proposition that the transfer and recombination of organizational capabilities are the foundation of an evolutionary theory of the firm. A critical element limiting the expansion of a firm is that the competitive value of codifying knowledge leads to the selection of organizing principles that are not functional in ail competitive environments. The pressure of speed is of critical importance to understand the evolutionary advantage of nonoptimal rules of coordinated action within a social community. Kogut, B., & Zander, U 1996 “What firms do? Coordination, identity, and learning,” Organization Science, 7: (5) 502-518. Abstract: Firms are organizations that represent social knowledge of coordination and learning. But why should their boundaries demarcate quantitative shifts in the knowledge and

capability of their members? Should not knowledge reside also in a network of interacting firms? This line of questioning presents the challenge to state an alternative view to the theory of the firm, a theory that has moved from Ceases early treatment of what firms do to a concern with ownership, incentives, and self-interest. We return to Ceases original insight in understanding the cost and benefits of Medini Bhandari 9 Source: http://www.doksinet a hrm but based on a view that individuals are characterized by an unsocial sociality. Does the perception of opportunism generate the need to integrate market transactions into the fimi, or do boundaries of the firm lead to the attribution of opportunism? This basic dichotomy between self-interest and the longing to belong is the behavioral underpinning to the superiority of firms over markets in resolving a fundamental dilemma: productivity grows with the division of labor but specialization increases the costs of communication and

coordination The knowledge of the firm has an economic value over market transactions when identity leads to social knowledge that supports coordination and communication. Through identification, procedural rules are learned, and coordination and communication are facilitated across individuals and groups of diverse specialized competence. A firm is distinct from a market because coordination, communication, and learning are situated not only physically in locality, but also mentally in an identity. Since identity implies a moral order as well as rules of exclusion, there are limitations and costs to relying upon a firm for exchange as opposed to the market. These costs are not necessarily those traditionally assigned to the category of decreasing returns to hierarchy. For example, an identity implies that some practices, and business, may be notionally inconsistent with each other. Norms of procedural justice that are identified with a firm imply that not all technically feasible

complements are permissible within the logic of a shared identity. There is consequently a cost to an identity that offsets the benefits. Because the assemblage of elements that compose an organization are subject to requirements of consistency, identities rule out potentially interesting avenues of innovation and creativity. We illustrate these ideas by returning to the original prisoners dilemma game and by an analysis of the coherence of a firm as a search for complements that are consistent with norms of procedural justice. We argue that the underlying dynamic of a prisoners dilemma game reveals the problems of coordination, communication, and conflicts in norms of justice when players are deprived of social knowledge and shared identity. Similarly, the determination of a firms coherence arises out of the demand for a moral and notional consistency in the categorization of its activities, as opposed to a technological necessity. These ideas are illustrated through an empirical

examination of logical complements in high performance work systems. Kogut, B., & Zander, U 1995 “Knowledge and the Speed of the Transfer and Imitation of Organizational Capabilities - An Empirical-Test,” Organization Science, 6: (1) 76-92. Abstract: The capabilities of a firm, or any organization, lie primarily in the organizing principles by which individual and functional expertise is structured, coordinated, and communicated. Firms are social communities which use their relational structure and shared coding schemes to enhance the transfer and communication of new skills and capabilities. To replicate new knowledge in the absence of a social community is difficult. A classic demonstration is the well-studied problem of the transfer across country borders of manufacturing capabilities that support production of new product innovations. We show in this article that the degree of codification and how easily capabilities are taught has a significant influence on the speed of

transfer. What makes the question of knowledge codification particularly interesting is that firms compete not only through the creation, replication, and transfer of their own knowledge, but also through their ability to imitate the product innovations of competitors. The capacity to speed the internal transfer of a production capability to new markets (e.g, those in other countries) is, consequently, of fundamental significance in a competitive environment. In the attempt to speed the internal transfer of knowledge, the dilemma arises that capabilities which can be easily communicated within the firm are more likely to be easily imitated by competitors. This relationship is tested by analyzing the effects of the ease of codifying and communicating a manufacturing capability not only on the time to its transfer, but also on the time to imitation of the new product. The determinants of the time to imitation are found to be the extent to which knowledge of the Medini Bhandari 10

Source: http://www.doksinet manufacturing processes is common among competitors, and the degree of continuous recombination of capabilities leading to improvement of the product or the manufacturing process. We support this interpretation by a discussion of the results from field research. A wider implication of these findings is the proposition that the transfer and recombination of organizational capabilities are the foundation of an evolutionary theory of the firm. A critical element limiting the expansion of a firm is that the competitive value of codifying knowledge leads to the selection of organizing principles that are not functional in ail competitive environments. The pressure of speed is of critical importance to understand the evolutionary advantage of nonoptimal rules of coordinated action within a social community. Kogut, B., & Zander, U 1993 “Knowledge of the Firm and the Evolutionary-Theory of the Multinational-Corporation,” Journal of International Business

Studies, 24: (4) 625-645. Abstract: Firms are social communities that specialize in the creation and internal transfer of knowledge. The multinational corporation arises not out of the failure of markets for the buying and selling of knowledge, but out of its superior efficiency as an organizational vehicle by which to transfer this knowledge across borders. We test the claim that firms specialize in the internal transfer of tacit knowledge by empirically examining the decision to transfer the capability to manufacture new products to wholly owned subsidiaries or to other parties. The empirical results show that the less codifiable and the harder to teach is the technology, the more likely the transfer will be to wholly owned operations. This result implies that the choice of transfer mode is determined by the efficiency of the multinational corporation in transferring knowledge relative to other firms, not relative to an abstract market transaction. The notion of the firm as

specializing in the transfer and recombination of knowledge is the foundation to an evolutionary theory of the multinational corporation. Kogut, B., & Zander, U 1992 “Knowledge of the Firm, Combinative Capabilities, and the Replication of Technology,” Organization Science, 3: (3) 383-397. Abstract: How should we understand why firms exist? A prevailing view has been that they serve to keep in check the transaction costs arising from the self-interested motivations of individuals. We develop in this article the argument that what firms do better than markets is the sharing and transfer of the knowledge of individuals and groups within an organization. This knowledge consists of information (e.g, who knows what) and of know-how (eg, how to organize a research team) What is central to our argument is that knowledge is held by individuals, but is also expressed in regularities by which members cooperate in a social community (i.e, group, organization, or network) If knowledge is

only held at the individual level, then firms could change simply by employee turnover. Because we know that hiring new workers is not equivalent to changing the skills of a firm, an analysis of what firms can do must understand knowledge as embedded in the organizing principles by which people cooperate within organizations. Based on this discussion, a paradox is identified: efforts by a firm to grow by the replication of its technology enhances the potential for imitation. By considering how firms can deter imitation by innovation, we develop a more dynamic view of how firms create new knowledge. We build up this dynamic perspective by suggesting that firms learn new skills by recombining their current capabilities. Because new ways of cooperating cannot be easily acquired, growth occurs by building on the social relationships that currently exist in a firm. What a firm has done before tends to predict what it can do in the future. In this sense, the cumulative knowledge of the firm

provides options to expand in new but uncertain markets in the future. We discuss at length the example of the make/buy decision and propose several testable hypotheses regarding the boundaries of the firm, without appealing to the notion of "opportunism." Medini Bhandari 11 Source: http://www.doksinet Krackhardt, D. 1997 “Organizational viscosity and the diffusion of controversial innovations,” Journal of Mathematical Sociology, 22: (2) 177-199. Abstract: This paper draws on the biological work of Boorman and Levitts Genetics of Altruism to develop a model of diffusion in organizations specifically when the innovation being diffused is controversial. By controversial, I mean an innovation whose value (and subsequent adoption) is socially determined and not rationally determined - that is, there is no exogenous superior or inferior quality to the innovation that determines its eventual adoption. The purpose of this paper is to model the conditions under which the

innovation may come to dominate the organization. The results parallel those of Boorman and Levitts: (1) In a large undifferentiated organization, no controversial innovation can survive unless it begins with a large proportion of believers in the innovation. (2) However, there are structural conditions under which even a very small minority of innovators can take over a large organization. Contrary to intuition and some of the literature on innovation, these conditions that lead to unexpected innovative adoptions are enhanced by the organizations viscosity, that is, the lack of free movement and exchange of ideas and people throughout the organization. Kurtz, P. D 1998 “A case study of a network as a learning organization,” Administration in Social Work, 22: 57-. Abstract: Every person is connected to others through networks composed of family, friends, colleagues, and organizations. No doubt everyone involved in the field of social work is a part of many networks Over the years

networks have been described in various ways (Biegel, Tracy, & Corvo, 1994; Dosher, 1976; Rivera &Erlich, 1992; Rubin & Rubin, 1986; Schon, 1971). For this study a network is described as an organizational interconnectedness for associating with others who hold similar interests, in order to develop and access ideas, information, support, and other resources that enable network members to improve what they are doing(such as provide a better service) or achieve a goal(such as the protection of abused children). Historically, social work has focused on understanding the nature of social support networks (Biegel,Magaziner, & Baum, 1991) and community-based interagency networks (Proven & Milward, 1995). There is also a trend for the formation of regional and national inter-organizational human service networks. Despite the proliferation of networks at all levels of the human service field, a good deal of what has been written about organizational networks has been

theoretical, and we know little about their inner workings. The purpose of this study was twofold: 1) to identify the organizational characteristics of an established regional inter-organizational human service network; and (2) to evaluate the impact of anointer-organizational network on members and their agencies. Furthermore, a post hoc examination of the findings suggests that the network under study manifests many of the characteristics of a learning organization (Senge, 1990). According to Senge, a learning organization is "where people continually expand their capacity to create the results they truly desire, where new and expansive patterns of thinking are nurtured, where collective aspiration is set free, anywhere people are continually learning how to learn together" (p. 4) Senge proposes that there are five core disciplines of a learning organization which empowers: 1) personal mastery, (2) mental models, (3) shared vision, (4) team building, and (5) systems

thinking. The discussion section of the study proposes ways in which the paradigm of a learning organization can be applied to an inter-organizational network. Implications of the findings are also presented. Liyanage, S. 1995 “Breeding Innovation Clusters Through Collaborative Research Networks,” Technovation, 15: 553-567. Abstract: Collaborative research programs have a significant impact on the structure of national innovation systems by creating and strengthening networks which are essential for breeding. innovation clusters. These networks involve both technology and market stakeholders and are extended to include industry, research and technology producers. Network activities have resulted in setting priority in Medini Bhandari 12 Source: http://www.doksinet research and linking research fields that have high potential to coalesce into distinct technological clusters. This paper examines the processes by which innovation clusters are formed in research collaborations by

analysing the work programs of 51 Australian Cooperative Research Centers (CRCs). The paper also provides an analytical framework to determine the direction of national research setting through cluster analysis. The author employs a methodology called co-occurrence of words in cluster construction It is argued that the iterative process of innovation cluster formation is an effective form of organizing a national system of innovation. These clusters enable public policy makers to identify complementarities between generation, acquisition and diffusion of knowledge across a range of innovations rather than a single innovation. Lutz, J. M 1997 "Regional leaders in the diffusion of tort innovations among the American states," Publius, 27: 39-58. Abstract: Many studies have analyzed the diffusion of legislative policies, but relatively little work has been done on the spread of judicial innovations. An analysis of the spend of eight tort doctrines among the American states

indicates that there were clear regional leaders, in eluding some slates that were not early adopters of the innovations but still served as leaders for their neighbors. There was little relationship between being a regional leader for legislative adoptions and being a regional leader in judicial adoptions, indicating that different processes influenced diffusion in these two arenas of state politic-al activity. Macdonald, S. 1995 “Learning To Change - An Information Perspective on Learning in the Organization,” Organization Science, 6 :( 5) 557-568. Abstract: Managers interested in helping their organizations change are devoting much attention to formal means of importing information. Yet much critical and influential information comes in through informal and individual contacts. This paper raises the issue of what should be the managerial role in extending the organizations informational boundaries. Mintrom, M. 1997a “Policy entrepreneurs and the diffusion of innovation,"

American Journal of Political Science, 41: 738-770. Abstract: Theory: In the literature on policy innovation diffusion, political scientists have paid little attention to how ideas for innovation gain prominence on government agendas. By considering the actions of policy entrepreneurs-political actors who promote policy ideas-we can gain important insights into the process of policy innovation and innovation diffusion. Hypotheses: Policy entrepreneurs constitute an identifiable class of political actors. Their presence and actions can significantly raise the probability of legislative consideration and approval of policy innovations. Methods: Event history analyses of the determinants of legislative consideration and approval of an idea for education reform-school choice-in the 48 contiguous United States from 1987 through 1992. The data set consists of unique information collected in a mail survey of members of the education policy elite in each state, augmented with published

statistics. Results: Policy entrepreneurs were identified as advocates of school choice in 26 states. While controlling for rival hypotheses, the presence and actions of policy entrepreneurs were found to raise significantly the probability of legislative consideration and approval of school choice as a policy innovation. These results suggest policy entrepreneurs should be given more attention in the literature on policy innovation diffusion. Medini Bhandari 13 Source: http://www.doksinet Mintrom, M. 1997b “The state-local nexus in policy innovation diffusion: The case of school choice," Publius, 27: 41-59. Abstract: Our knowledge of how policy innovations diffuse in federal systems could be enhanced by paging greater attention to the behavior of policy entrepreneurs. This study shows how policy entrepreneurs have helped stimulate the diffusion of stale school-choice plans by collecting and generating evidence of the workability of this innovation. Importantly, these

policy entrepreneurs have often used evidence from local experiments to promote state policy change. Thus, a state-focal nexus exists in the diffusion of school choice. This analysis suggests that there is value in conceptualizing policy innovation diffusion in a federal system as both a horizontal (that is, state to state) and a vertical (that is, state and local) phenomenon. Mintrom, M., & Vergari, S 1998 "Policy networks and innovation diffusion: The case of state education reforms," Journal of Politics, 60: 126-148. Abstract: Scholars in many fields have long recognized the role that social and professional networks play in the diffusion of innovations. However, among political scientists, an awkward separation has emerged between scholars investigating policy diffusion processes and those investigating policy networks and more generally, the role of ideas in politics. In this article, we present a theoretical argument for integrating insights from policy network

studies into diffusion studies. Since they face clear incentives to tap the resources of policy networks, we give policy entrepreneurs a prominent place in this discussion. Using event history analysis models of the diffusion of school choice ideas across the United States, we test the empirical relevance of our discussion and find that greater involvement in policy networks significantly increases the likelihood of policy entrepreneurs achieving their legislative goals. Based on our theoretical discussion and these empirical results, we suggest that political scientists investigating the diffusion of policy innovations should pay careful attention to the role that policy networks play in this process. Moon, M. J, & Bretschneider, S 1997 "Can state government actions affect innovation and its diffusion?: An extended communication model and empirical test," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 54: 57-77. Abstract: This article looks at how a state governments roles

as both a sponsor and a diffuser of an innovation affect the adoption-diffusion process. The article first develops a theoretical framework by extending the basic communication model of diffusion to include state governments role in state government-sponsored innovation and its diffusion. This model also incorporates organizational and innovation factors. Next an empirical test of the extended communication model is conducted using data on innovations sponsored by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). The results suggest that the degree of state government involvement in innovation development is positively associated with diffusion. The results also indicate that state governments diffusion-facilitating efforts such as providing information about innovations, financial support during development, and procedural facilitation of development are positively related to industrys adoption decision for new innovation. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Inc

Mossberger, K. 1999 "State-federal diffusion and policy learning: From enterprise zones to empowerment zones," Publius, 29: 31-50. Abstract: There is little empirical evidence on whether the federal government learns from policy experimentation in the states, the "laboratories of democracy." Interviews with participants involved in formulating the federal Empowerment Zones/Enterprise Communities program offer evidence of limited policy learning from state enterprise zones. Respondents were aware of general trends and drew a few general conclusions, rather than borrowing from any particular state. None of the federal policy makers conducted an active search for information about the state zones, but state and federal organizations Medini Bhandari 14 Source: http://www.doksinet served as channels of information about the state programs. This finding suggests that such organizations assist state-federal diffusion as well as interstate diffusion of policy ideas.

Mintrom, M., & S Vergari 1998 Policy networks and innovation diffusion: The case of state education reforms,” Journal of Politics, 60: (1) 126-148. Abstract: Scholars in many fields have long recognized the role that social and professional networks play in the diffusion of innovations. However, among political scientists, an awkward separation has emerged between scholars investigating policy diffusion processes and those investigating policy networks and more generally, the role of ideas in politics. In this article, we present a theoretical argument for integrating insights from policy network studies into diffusion studies. Since they face clear incentives to tap the resources of policy networks, we give policy entrepreneurs a prominent place in this discussion. Using event history analysis models of the diffusion of school choice ideas across the United States, we test the empirical relevance of our discussion and find that greater involvement in policy networks

significantly increases the likelihood of policy entrepreneurs achieving their legislative goals. Based on our theoretical discussion and these empirical results, we suggest that political scientists investigating the diffusion of policy innovations should pay careful attention to the role that policy networks play in this process. Monge, P. R, J Fulk, M E Kalman, A J Flanagin, C Parnassa, S Rumsey 1998 “Production of collective action in alliance-based interorganizational communication and information systems,” Organization Science, 9: (3) 411-433. Abstract: This article presents a public goods-based theory that describes the process of producing multifirm, alliance-based, interorganizational communication and information public goods. These goods offer participants in alliances collective benefits that are (a) nonexcludable, in that they are available to all alliance partners whether or not they have contributed, and (b) jointly supplied, in that partners uses of the good are

noncompeting. Two generic types of goods produced are connectivity, the ability of partners to directly communicate with each other through the information and communication system, and communality, the availability of a commonly accessible pool of information to alliance partners. Four types of alliances that can produce these goods are identified: (a) precompetitive, (b) competitive, (c) joint value creation, and (d) value chain. The article examines a variety of factors that influence the production of alliance-based connective and communal goods. Twenty-three integrated propositions are presented The article concludes with an example of the application of the theoretical model to research on connectivity and communality provided through an alliance-based interorganizational communication and information system linking more than 50 alliance partners. Nooteboom, B. 1999 “Innovation and inter-firm linkages: new implications for policy,” Research Policy, 28: (8) 793-805. Abstract:

This article discusses the implications for competition, innovation and learning of different forms of inter-firm linkage, ways to govern them, different generic systems of innovation, and government policy. It employs a transformed theory of transactions that can deal with innovation and learning, and brings in trust next to opportunism Pangarkar, N., & S Klein 1998 “Bandwagon pressures and interfirm alliances in the global pharmaceutical industry,” Journal of International Marketing, 6: (2) 54-73. Abstract: This study examines the applicability of a bandwagon explanation for interfirm alliances in the global pharmaceutical industry. A sample of alliances undertaken by 43 firms, with headquarters in the United States, Europe, and Japan, in the period 1975 to 1989, was analyzed. Bandwagon pressures, measured by the proportion of other firms in ones peer group undertaking alliances and their average number of alliances, was found to influence both the probability that a firm

will undertake at least one alliance and the number of alliances if undertakes. Medini Bhandari 15 Source: http://www.doksinet Pecorino, P. 1999 “The effect of group size on public good provision in a repeated game setting,” Journal of Public Economics, 72: (1) 121-134. Abstract: The ability to cooperate in the provision of a pubic good is analyzed in a repeated game. Holding the level of provision fixed, with quasi-linear utility we find that the critical value of the discount parameter converges to 0 in the limit. Thus, cooperation is feasible in a large market Next, we allow the level cooperation to be adjusted optimally as the group size increases, both for a specific form of quasilinear utility and for Cobb-Douglas utility. In each case, we find that there are admissible values of the discount parameter such that cooperation may be maintained in the limit. Radaelli, C. M 2000 "Policy transfer in the European Union: Institutional isomorphism as a source of

legitimacy," Governance, 13: 25-43. Abstract: This article examines public policy in the European Union (EU) by drawing upon the framework of policy transfer, which has been recently refined by comparativists, and the concept of isomorphism developed within or organizational theory. Three case studies-namely, the single currency, tax policy and media ownership policy-are discussed and compared with the aim of assessing the potential of isomorphism for the analysis of policy diffusion. The author argues that European institutions which have a serious limitation in terms of legitimacy, stimulate policy transfer by catalyzing isomorphic processes. Policy transfer, however, is constrained when there are no national cases to be imitated Yet European institutions, most notably the European Commission, can overcome the problem by "inseminating" solutions into national political systems. Robertson, M., Swan, J, & Newell, S 1996 “The role of networks in the diffusion of

technological innovation,” Journal of Management Studies, 33: 333-359. Abstract: This research considers the diffusion of computer-aided production management (CAPM) technology in the UK manufacturing sector during the mid to late 1980s, focusing on the role of interorganizational networks in tile diffusion process. Research on innovation diffusion has tended to adopt a pro-innovation bias such that adoption of prescribed best practice technologies is always considered to be the best policy. In the UK, one particular form of CAPM (MRP/MRPIT) has been heavily promoted by technology suppliers as best practice. However, the notion of best practice de-emphasizes the importance of decisions about technology design when users attempt to develop firm-specific solutions. Crucial to these decisions are the inter-organizational networks through which potential adopters learn about relevant technologies. Using three case companies, where the introduction of CAPM occurred at approximately the

same time, decisions regarding adoption, design and subsequent implementation, are explored in order to establish the influence of inter-organizational networks on the diffusion and subsequent appropriation of CAPM technologies. These cases revealed that potential adopters engaged in a range of inter-organizational networks through which they learned about new technologies. However, the knowledge diffused through many of these networks was shaped by technology suppliers who were promoting similar ideas about best practice. Thus, while involvement in interorganizational networks gave potential adopters access to information about new technology, this information tended to reinforce supplier images of best practice and did not always lead these firms to develop appropriate technological solutions. Problematic relationships between the suppliers of the technology and the users was seen here to limit the redesign and further diffusion of CAPM. Rom, M. C, Peterson, P E, & Scheve, K F

1998 "Interstate competition and welfare policy," Publius, 28: 17-37. Abstract: In 1996, the federal government terminated the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) program and replaced it with the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program (TANF). Many powers once held by the federal government are now being used by state governments. Will welfare assistance be redesigned and expanded or will states "race to the bottom ?" This issue is Medini Bhandari 16 Source: http://www.doksinet investigated by examining state welfare policy choices during the latter years of AFDC (1976-1994). Because each state under AFDC had the authority to set the level of its welfare guarantee for families that had no income, it is possible to estimate the effects of interstate competition on AFDC guarantee levels. By estimating a spatial autocorrelation coefficient while controlling for theoretically relevant variables and state fixed effects, this study finds evidence

that stales are sensitive to the welfare policies of their competitors. Schenk, M., Dahm, H, & Sonje, D 1997 “The importance of social networks concerning the diffusion of new communication technology,” Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie, 49: 35-. Abstract: The diffusion of innovations can be accelerated or slowed down by interpersonal communication in social networks. Nevertheless, there is still a lack of reliable theoretical and empirical concepts of measuring social influence. For analysis of the interpersonal influence the present study combines two different approaches (concept of ego-centered networks and the theory of planned behavior by Ajzen/Fishbein). The study uses a questionnaire with 367 responses from German users and non-users of computer networks. The results point to social networks as a crucial determinant of innovationdecisions, especially in the case of the diffusion of modern communication technology Not only in the personal core

network have early adopters many relations with people who have already adopted the innovation, but also outside of it. In many cases these relations can actually be described as homogeneous, but also as weak ties. The innovators-network does not only form a pro-innovative background, but it also turns out to be a source of social influence or social pressure urging others to adopt the innovation. Seeliger, R. 1996 "Conceptualizing and researching policy convergence," Policy Studies Journal, 24: 287-306. Abstract: This article develops criteria to classify the relative development of public policies across countries as convergent, divergent, identical and synchronous, and indeterminate. It emphasizes that relative policy developments have to be compared over defined time periods, and that they cannot be aggregated or averaged over several time periods, or across policy sectors or policy dimensions. The significance of policy convergence between countries needs to be evaluated

against relative policy developments between other countries during the same period. Given these rigorous conceptual and methodological requirements, it is doubtful whether policy convergence is as pervasive as generally assumed in the literature. Stone, D. 2000 “Non-governmental policy transfer: The strategies of independent policy institutes,” Governance, 13: 45-70. Abstract: Discussions of policy transfer have primarily focused on official actors and networks. The nongovernmental mode of policy transfer via foundations, think tanks and non-governnmental organizations is a relatively neglected dimension. Accordingly, this paper addresses the role of think tanks in promoting the spread of policy ideas about privatization. The importance of think tanks to policy transfer is their ability to diffuse ideas by (1) acting as a clearing-house for information; (2) their involvement in the advocacy of ideas; (3) their involvement in domestic and transnational policy nef networks; and (4)

their intellectual and scholarly base providing expertise on specialized policy issues. Concepts from comparative public policy and international relations such as "social learning" and "epistemic communities" are used to outline the way think tanks advocate innovative policy ideas. However, not only have think tanks been effective in promoting the transfer of policy ideas, the international spread of think ranks also exhibits organizational transfer. Studlar, D. T 1999 "Diffusion of tobacco control in North America," Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 566: 68-79. Medini Bhandari 17 Source: http://www.doksinet Abstract: Tobacco control has grown enormously across advanced industrial countries; over the past two decades. This article assesses the process of the diffusion by networks, of innovations in tobacco control both within Canada, sometimes considered a world leader in tobacco control, and across the border with the

United States. Advocacy groups, both governmental and nongovernmental, have had a role in spreading ideas about tobacco control from one jurisdiction to another, on both the federal and state/provincial level. In contrast to the usual North American pattern of public policy leadership by the United States, followed by Canada, in tobacco control the identity of the leader and follower varies, as does the level at which leadership is exercised. Schenk, M., H Dahm, & D Sonje 1997 “The importance of social networks concerning the diffusion of new communication technology,” Kolner Zeitschrift Fur Soziologie Und Sozialpsychologie, 49: (1) 35-. Abstract: The diffusion of innovations can be accelerated or slowed down by interpersonal communication in social networks. Nevertheless, there is still a lack of reliable theoretical and empirical concepts of measuring social influence. For analysis of the interpersonal influence the present study combines two different approaches (concept of

ego-centered networks and the theory of planned behavior by Ajzen/Fishbein). The study uses a questionnaire with 367 responses from German users and non-users of computer networks. The results point to social networks as a crucial determinant of innovationdecisions, especially in the case of the diffusion of modern communication technology Not only in the personal core network have early adopters many relations with people who have already adopted the innovation, but also outside of it. In many cases these relations can actually be described as homogeneous, but also as weak ties. The innovators-network does not only form a pro-innovative background, but it also turns out to be a source of social influence or social pressure urging others to adopt the innovation. Van Vugt, M., & D De Cremer 1999 “Leadership in social dilemmas: The effects of group identification on collective actions to provide public goods,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76: (4) 587-599.

Abstract: Two experimental studies investigated the role of group identification in the selection of and cooperation with leaders to manage public good dilemmas. The findings of the 1st study revealed that there was a general preference to select leaders with a legitimate power base (i.e, democratic, elected, and internal leaders), but these preferences were particularly pronounced when peoples identification with their group was high rather than low. The 2nd study complemented these findings by showing that when group identification was low, an instrumental leader (i.e, who punishes noncontributing members) was far more efficient than a relational leader (i.e, who builds positive intra-group relations) in raising contributions. Yet, when group identification was high, both leader types appeared to be equally efficient Weenig, M. W H 1999 “Communication networks in the diffusion of an innovation in an organization,” Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 29: (5) 1072-1092. Abstract:

Research on decision-making processes and the diffusion of innovations in organizations has been focused on the influence of formal organizational structures. Since the successful implementation of most innovations requires the cooperation of employees, it is important to investigate how employees knowledge, opinions, and individual decisions concerning an innovation are influenced by other employees. The present study investigates how information acquisition and adoption decisions of employees are influenced by the quantity and strength of their informal communication ties in the organization, and how strong this influence is in comparison with influence from formal communication sources. Results indicate that formal communication sources contributed more to the process of information diffusion, whereas informal communication sources (especially the employees strong ties), were more influential on attitudes and adoption of intentions. Medini Bhandari 18 Source: http://www.doksinet

Westhead, P. 1997 “R&D inputs and outputs of technology-based firms located on and off science parks,” R & D Management, 27: 45-62. Abstract: Science Parks (adjacent to universities) provide an important resource network for technologybased firms. To ascertain the added value of a Science Park location the innovativeness (with regard to a variety of input as well as output measures) of independent technology-based Science Park firms are compared with the levels recorded by a comparable group of firms not located on a Park. Empirical evidence collected in 1992/93 from firms in a follow-on sample (originally interviewed in 1986) as well as a new sample study (independent firms that had located on a Science Park between 1986 and 1992) both revealed no statistically significant differences between the two groups on a variety of innovativeness measures. Results from both samples suggest Science Park firms do not directly invest more in R&D than off-Park firms nor do they

record significantly higher levels of technology diffusion. The policy implications of the research findings are discussed. Weale, A., Pridham, G, Williams, A, & Porter, M 1996 "Environmental administration in six European states: Secular convergence or national distinctiveness?," Public Administration, 74: 255274. Abstract: To what extent has environmental administration in Europe been shaped by common secular forces or by distinctive national contexts? Middle range theories of the policy process suggest competing answers to this question, with some implying the likelihood of convergence in administrative structures and others suggesting persistent national distinctiveness. Using data on Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and the UK, we construct a measure of administrative concentration in each country. From this measure we assess the extent of convergence over time among the six nations. We argue that national context is a more important influence than

common secular trends, and we identify in each state the political dynamics behind the national pattern. The symbolic role of administrative reorganization is thereby highlighted in the politics of environmental policy. Westhead, P. 1997 “R&D inputs and outputs of technology-based firms located on and off science parks,” R & D Management, 27: (1) 45-62. Abstract: Science Parks (adjacent to universities) provide an important resource network for technologybased firms. To ascertain the added value of a Science Park location the innovativeness (with regard to a variety of input as well as output measures) of independent technology-based Science Park firms are compared with the levels recorded by a comparable group of firms not located on a Park. Empirical evidence collected in 1992/93 from firms in a follow-on sample (originally interviewed in 1986) as well as a new sample study (independent firms that had located on a Science Park between 1986 and 1992) both revealed no

statistically significant differences between the two groups on a variety of innovativeness measures. Results from both samples suggest Science Park firms do not directly invest more in R&D than off-Park firms nor do they record significantly higher levels of technology diffusion. The policy implications of the research findings are discussed. Medini Bhandari 19