Kaveh Abhari

Co-innovation platform affordances: Developing a conceptual model and measurement instrument

The importance of co-innovation platforms has been well established, but a valid and reliable instrument to measure the affordances of these platforms for co-innovation behavior has not yet been reported in the literature. A robust, validated instrument to measure co-innovation platform affordances (PAs) will facilitate the conduct of studies across different platforms and contribute to enhanced understanding of co-innovation behaviors, outcomes, and platform design. The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize co-innovation PAs, develop a reliable measurement instrument capturing critical facets of co-innovation, namely ideation, collaboration, and communication, and validate the instrument.,The construct of PAs was conceptualized based on the findings from two case studies of co-innovation networks and the key characteristics of social mediating technology affordances. The measurement items newly developed via a case study underwent a two-round exploratory analysis to ensure face validity and content validity. The resulting instrument was subjected to a pilot study and a field study to establish the necessary reliability and validity.,The findings of the study reveal that co-innovation PAs have three distinctive components, namely ideation, collaboration, and communication. Furthermore, the results of the study suggest that PAs are most appropriately operationalized as a second-order construct comprising all three components. The empirical results from the field study show a high degree of confidence in both translation validity and criterion-related validity.,Drawing from co-innovation and affordances literature, this study develops and validates a general instrument to measure co-innovation PAs. The result is a reliable and parsimonious instrument with 12 items. The authors believe that the instrument can contribute significantly to future empirical investigations of co-innovation behavior on virtual platforms.

The Future of Social Learning: A Novel Approach to Connectivism

The primary goal of this paper is to operationalize the connectivism approach into a new learning model with additions from problem-based and contextual learning that can be effectively implemented together, to improve socioeconomically diverse learners’ educational outcomes (attitude and persistence) in STEM (Science, Technology, Education and Mathematics) areas. We model this approach through the development and demonstration of an innovative, evidence-based, and scalable how-to-learn program that leverages connectivism principles and technology. This paper uses the case of energy education to provide contextual relevancy and prepare learners for the high demand jobs of the future. The new model is developed within the context of Internet of Things (IoT), where students have a unique opportunity to participate in a real-world application of an IoT system for green energy governance.

Measuring the Perceived Functional Affordances of Collaborative Innovation Networks in Social Product Development

The social model of open innovation allows all members of a community to participate in new product development. Social-media co-innovation platforms are the main enablers of this model of open innovation. One aspect of this business transformation model, co-innovation platform affordances, has captured the attention of researchers and practitioners. Although the importance of co-innovation platform affordances has been established, the development of a valid and reliable instrument to measure this construct in research studies has not been reported in the literature. This paper conceptualizes co-innovation platform affordances and develops a valid and reliable measurement instrument capturing critical facets of co-innovation, namely ideation, collaboration, and communication.

Creative Co-production: The Adaption of an Open Innovation Model in Creative Industries

Advanced information systems enable digital media and creative industries to use collaborative networks to boost creative co-production not only across organizational boundaries, but also across geographies. The initial success of crowdsourcing and other open-innovation strategies encourages these industries to consider creative co-production as a viable option for future development. This chapter suggests a general theoretical framework for the implementation of co-production in creative industries based on three components: co-creation environment, network coordination, and experiential communication. The proposed framework is sufficiently general yet grounded in the phenomenon to guide future research and development.

The Role of Actor Capability in (Re)Defining Technology Affordances: The Case of Open Innovation Platform.

Scholars have strived for more than two decades to understand and conceptualized technology affordances. While some claim that affordances should be at the core of the HCI discipline, there is limited consensus regarding how to define and operationalized this concept. In recent developments in the IS literature, perceived affordances are operationalized as the relationship between the actor’s goal and the technology’s features. In this research, we refine the concept of affordances by incorporating the new factor of ‘actor capability’ and test this claim by introducing and validating a three-way interaction between goal, capability, and feature in an open innovation context. Our contribution provides a more nuanced yet powerful way of understanding technology affordances from both theoretical and practical perspectives.

A risk worth taking? The effects of risk and prior experience on co-innovation participation

Co-innovation networks face the important challenge of cultivating collective innovation outcomes while also preserving the interests of individual contributors. Addressing this challenge requires first understanding and then managing individuals’ perception of co-innovation risks. The purpose of this paper is to provide a meaningful approach to addressing co-innovation risks using a valid and reliable model to assess actors’ perception of risk and examine its effect on actor co-innovation behavior.,The construct of co-innovation risk from the actor’s perspective was conceptualized based on a case study of a co-innovation network. The measurement items underwent a pilot study and a field study to establish the necessary reliability and validity. This paper also empirically assesses a nomological network that illustrates the effect of risk on co-innovation behavior with a moderating effect of prior experience.,Co-innovation actors perceived four different individual risks: time, social, intellectual property right, and financial. The empirical results from the field study demonstrate a high degree of confidence in both translation validity and criterion-related validity. Negative effects of perceived co-innovation risk on actors’ continuous intention to ideate, collaborate, and communicate in co-innovation were evident, but prior experience moderated these relationships.,Drawing from co-innovation and individual risk literature, this study develops and validates a general instrument to measure co-innovation risk from the actors’ perspective. The result is a reliable and parsimonious instrument with 15 items, which contributes significantly to future empirical investigations of co-innovation behavior on virtual platforms.

Communication in Co-innovation Networks

The aim of this study is to develop an integrative understanding of the factors fostering communication activities in co-innovation networks. Participants in these social networks must communicate actively to foster collaboration and idea generation, but communication may not develop naturally, even if the platform provides the software features to do so. This study clarifies the mechanism underlying the relationship between co-innovation platform affordances and communication. We explored the role of sociotechnical affordances, social experience, and desire for learning that are believed to influence individuals’ continuous communication intentions. We outline how social technology affordances that enable socialization may affect actors experience and behavior and ultimately the co-innovation outcomes. We conclude with a discussion of future explorations of this perspective.

Perceived Individual Risk of Co-innovation in Collaborative Innovation Networks

Cultivating collective innovation while preserving the interest of the individual contributors is one of the main challenges collaborative innovation networks face. This challenge is riddled with difficulties in managing individuals’ co-innovation risks. The first step toward understanding co-innovation risks is the development of a valid and reliable model to measure the actors’ perception of risk. This paper conceptualizes co-innovation risk from actor’s perspective. It also proposes and tests a nomological network that illustrates the effect of risk on coinnovation behavior.