Abstract
Serendipity refers to unexpected encounters with ideas or insights and their intentional application to achieve favorable outcomes. Despite extensive prior studies, the concept lacks theoretical logic and empirical validation regarding the role of an intentional act in the relationship between serendipitous encounters and their favorable outcomes. Drawing from self-determination theory, we develop a model that highlights the role of needs satisfaction in explaining this relationship. Positioning the empirical context to fortunate discoveries of information and social connections in professional use of Twitter, we validate the model by a cross-sectional survey study of 473 users. The model builds on the observation that individuals’ serendipitous encounters are associated with Twitter-enabled innovation, that is, a contextualized form of task innovation. The study findings support the research model revealing that serendipitous encounters are positively associated with needs satisfaction and that needs satisfaction is positively associated with Twitter-enabled innovation. In other words, fortunate discoveries of new information and contacts increase Twitter users’ intent to utilize the platform in new ways to accomplish work when the three key psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness are satisfied.
Highlights
In the organizational context, serendipity can be described as a fortunate discovery of new ideas, solutions, or insights, prompted by an individual’s interaction with information, objects, or people [1, 2]
Positioning the empirical context to fortunate discoveries of information and social connections in professional use of Twitter, we validate the model by a crosssectional survey study of 473 users. e model builds on the observation that individuals’ serendipitous encounters are associated with Twitter-enabled innovation, that is, a contextualized form of task innovation. e study findings support the research model revealing that serendipitous encounters are positively associated with needs satisfaction and that needs satisfaction is positively associated with Twitter-enabled innovation
These studies have not provided a conceptual explanation of how this intent plays a part in the relationship of serendipity encounters and their favorable outcomes, neither have they demonstrated which factors could explain this empirically
Summary
Serendipity can be described as a fortunate discovery of new ideas, solutions, or insights, prompted by an individual’s interaction with information, objects, or people [1, 2]. Recent organizational research has highlighted the notion that Twitter users experience serendipity [3,4,5]. Researchers have suggested that Twitter-based accidental, though fortunate, discoveries of information and new contacts can facilitate task innovation in organizations [5, 7]. Task innovation is defined as the extent to which the use of an IT application helps users create and try out new ideas in their work [9]. Task innovation is considered a key factor in organizational success and competitive advantage [10,11,12]
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