Knowledge Exchange Activities Research Articles

Seizing the economic and social impact of universities’ knowledge exchange activities: Does one size fit all?

Seizing the economic and social impact of universities’ knowledge exchange activities: Does one size fit all?

Introduction to the Special Issue: Leveraging Global Value Chains for innovation and industrialization in Africa

The global nature of innovation has led to the emergence of Global Innovation Networks (GINs) and Global Value Chains (GVCs), facilitating knowledge exchange and economic activities across borders. GVCs offer platforms for accessing external knowledge and fostering innovation. They have evolved through three eras of innovation models: the Linear and Closed Model (LCM), the Interactive and Closed Model (ICM), and the Interactive and Open Model (IOM). The IOM emphasizes open innovation principles, intersecting with GINs and GVCs. Lessons from East Asian and Latin American countries highlight strategic practices for GVC integration, focusing on export-oriented industrialization, education, technology policies, infrastructure, and SME support. In Africa, GVC engagement spans agriculture, manufacturing, and services sectors, driving economic growth, job creation, and technological advancements. To advance GVC participation in Africa, a research agenda, policy directions, and action plans are proposed. The research agenda emphasizes GVC governance, value addition, sustainability, innovation, and regional integration. Policy directions focus on infrastructure development, trade facilitation, SME support, human capital development, and promoting sustainable and inclusive growth. African businesses are encouraged to conduct value chain mapping, form strategic partnerships, embrace technology, ensure quality assurance, invest in capacity building, and diversify markets to leverage the potential of GVCs for economic transformation and global competitiveness.

Analysis of the Fate of Literati in Qing Dynasty Who did not Meet the Imperial Examination: Life Dilemma and Spiritual Pursuit

The Qing Dynasty was the last period of Chinese feudal society, during which the imperial examination system played an important role. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the fate of literati who failed to pass the imperial examination in Qing Dynasty, focusing on the analysis of their life difficulties and the spiritual realm they pursued. Firstly, it introduces the historical background and structure of the imperial examination system in Qing Dynasty, and its influence on social mobility and literati status. It then discusses the economic challenges, career opportunities limitations and psychological difficulties faced by literati who failed to pass the exam. At the same time, it analyzes how these literati seek spiritual satisfaction and contribution by cultivating personal interest, engaging in literary and artistic creation, and participating in knowledge exchange and cultural activities. Through case studies of well-known literati who failed the exam, their life paths, dilemmas, and achievements are explored, as well as their philosophical and spiritual legacies. Finally, compare with the literati who passed the examination, reflect on the diversity of literati life in Qing Dynasty. The purpose of this study is to provide a new perspective for understanding the fate of literati in Qing Dynasty, and to provide inspiration and suggestions for future research.

Constraints and solutions for development and uptake of integrated pest management in the UK

AbstractAgricultural improvements that reduce conventional pesticide use and support environmental aims are a priority. Current approaches develop promising alternative products but meet significant challenges in bringing them to market. This article reports findings of an Association of Applied Biologists event at which delegates from relevant industry sectors discussed the establishment of an effective integrated pest management innovation system linking multiple stakeholders. Interrelated recommendations were agreed upon, focused on structured gap analysis, co‐design processes reflecting the complete innovation system, the approval process, application equipment, enhancing grower confidence, integrating knowledge exchange activities, promulgation of public good information and the need for an overarching national action plan and supporting legislation.

Role of twinnings in scaling up innovative solutions across Europe

IntroductionTwinnings are cross-border knowledge exchange activities where two or more organisations learn from each other’s experiences and are often used as a scaling up mechanism.ObjectivesThis paper discusses the importance of...

Effects of environmental awareness training and environmental commitment on firm's green innovation performance: Empirical insights from medical equipment suppliers.

In recent years, the intensification of global industrialization coupled with the enterprise's production and operating activities have caused pollution, increasing the current environmental pressure. Relevant government departments in China have instituted several stringent measures (environmental protection sensitization and awareness activities, training sessions, and exchange activities targeted towards enterprise managers) to address these rising environmental problems. Though these measures have gained traction over the years, there is a dearth of research on their effectiveness on the green innovation performance of enterprises. To bridge the gap, this research explores the effect of environmental awareness training, knowledge exchange activities, and commitment on green innovation performance with survey data from 285 medical equipment manufacturing companies in China. It further expands the theoretical application of environmental awareness training, commitment, and innovation performance from the lens of the Knowledge-Based View. The findings depict a positive relationship between environmental awareness training and innovation performance. It also finds a mediating influence of environmental commitment in the relationship between environmental awareness training and green innovation performance. Furthermore, environmental knowledge exchange activities positively moderate the relationship between environmental awareness training and environmental commitment. These findings offer valuable insights for the green development of medical equipment manufacturing enterprises and the government to formulate environmental protection policies.

To what extent do universities’ formal and informal knowledge exchange activities interact: evidence from UK HE-BCI survey

Third Mission engagement has become a necessary vehicle to transfer science and knowledge from higher education institutions (HEIs) to society. An extensive body of research has mainly focused on the determinants of research commercialization, and the consequence of knowledge exchange activities largely carried out on an individual academic level. There is a lack of theoretical and empirical evidence on the link and interaction between formal (traditionally referred to as commercialization of university research, such as patent, licensing and spin-off) and informal knowledge exchange activities (usually denoted as university community engagement activities, such as collaborative research, consultancy, facilities and equipment, continuing professional development etc.). In this article we seek to fill this gap by viewing knowledge exchange activities as an enabler and supporter of commercial activities. Against this background, we intend to provide an analysis into the relationship between informal activities and formal activities using an unbalanced panel of UK universities for the period 2005–2020. Our results reveal that while provision of continuing professional development courses, facilities and equipment, and consultancy significantly impact commercial activities such as patenting and licensing, collaborative research appears to be a strong predictor for spin-offs generation. This study offers some general implications for HEIs’ policy and Technology Transfer Offices.

IMPLEMENTATION OF KNOWLEDGE SHARING IN MSME PRACTICES

This article aims to analyse the implementation of Knowledge Sharing in MSME practices based on good practices carried out in one of the communities that have a focus on gathering several MSMEs to be able to synergize well. The approach used is qualitative with a case study design conducted at the Tulungagung Young Entrepreneurial Community. The results showed that: 1) Knowledge sharing was held in the form of skill upgrading workshops, licensing mechanism consultations, discussions between members related to the latest MSME issues, and training both by fellow members and from external parties such as the government; 2) The results of knowledge sharing activities have the opportunity to support the improvement of knowledge, understanding and skills of MSME actors in a fairly systematic way; 3) The obstacle faced in the implementation of knowledge sharing is that not every member can participate in programs implemented by the community so that some knowledge sharing processes have an unequal impact between members with each other. Members who regularly participate in knowledge exchange activities will obtain more information and knowledge that is useful for their entrepreneurial development practices. In the development of activities, the role of the government through policy and material support can be a strategy that needs further study.

Building an Agroecology Knowledge Network for Agrobiodiversity Conservation

This paper describes the development of a transdisciplinary knowledge network dedicated to supporting agroecology knowledge exchange and capacity building that is particularly focused on the sustainable use and conservation of agrobiodiversity. The network—Fostering Effective Agroecology for Sustainable Transformation, or FEAST—includes nodes in Brazil, Cuba, Mexico, and Canada’s Northwest Territories and has been engaged in Participatory Action Research activities since 2015. This paper examines the development of the network over time, including a workshop held in 2019 in and around Curitiba, Brazil, and reflects on the outcomes of knowledge exchange activities. We discuss how the development of the FEAST network has informed participants’ local practice and their sense of belonging to a larger-scale, international movement for agroecology, agrobiodiversity conservation, and food system sustainability.

“How Do You Measure a Relationship?” Assessment and Evaluation Challenges of Knowledge Exchange Activities in Information Work

ABSTRACTToday there is increasing emphasis on knowledge exchange (KE), the movement of knowledge and expertise amongst diverse groups to enhance research uptake, use, and impact in healthcare, government, and community settings. Library and information science (LIS) professionals are central actors in KE though community engagement, scholarly communication, literacy, and cultural heritage initiatives, but (how) is this work formally documented and evaluated? Through interviews with 24 information professionals working in varied settings, we considered how KE activities fit into the current library assessment and evaluation landscape. Using thematic analysis, we identified challenges with placing this work within current assessment practices and evaluation frameworks and showing its value, as well as a desire for alternative, more dynamic assessment and evaluation methods. We discuss these findings with respect to previous research in LIS and KE more broadly to consider professional and organizational implications.

Role of Leader-Member Exchange, Knowledge Hiding, Prosocial Motivation, And Impression Management Motivation for The Creative Potential of Employees

The main purpose of the research was to investigate whether employees who develop a high-quality leader-member exchange (LMX), do they also engage in knowledge exchange activities or they hide knowledge, and do their knowledge hiding affects creativity. Data for this investigation were collected from 413 subordinates and their respective 57 supervisors working in a pharmaceutical organisation operating in Jakarta, Indonesia. The collected data was then analyzed for regression and mediated moderation with MPlus. We found that LMX may have a negative side, as those in quality exchange relationships with supervisors may hide knowledge from others, which may affect the creative potential of employees. With this research, we have shown that interpersonal mechanisms in general and LMX in particular will not always be beneficial for the exchange of knowledge and creativity of employees. We contributed to creativity research by introducing prosocial motivation and impression-management motivation as having a moderating role in knowledge hiding and creativity relationships. Our research revealed that the motivation of a focal employee overrides knowledge hiding, the underlying social exchange, knowledge hiding, and creativity relationships. The motivation of focal employees influences the social exchange patterns by affecting knowledge hiding among coworkers, thereby enhancing/ suppressing their creativity. Limitations and future research directions were also discussed.

Bringing Social Science Into Critical Zone Science: Exploring Smallholder Farmers' Learning Preferences in Chinese Human‐Modified Critical Zones

AbstractThere is a growing global emphasis on sustainable agriculture to reduce human impacts and improve delivery of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). With increasing investment in critical zone observatories (CZOs), it becomes important to understand how sustainable agricultural knowledge is produced, shared and used between different groups including farmers, scientists and government. To explore these issues, scientists leading the knowledge exchange (KE) component of a China‐UK CZO program studied three farming regions with contrasting geologies and varying economic levels, using a practice‐based research method. We demonstrate how additional funding for social science research allowed us to understand how farmers access and share farming knowledge through bonding, bridging and linking networks, and how this varies spatially, using interviews and survey questionnaires. Knowledge flows, barriers and opportunities for designing locally suited two‐way KE activities were identified. First, we highlight the need for a more locally, socially embedded and reflexive approach to build trust and better address pressing local environmental challenges. Second, we show how social science can usefully inform KE for collaborative, international development science, to draw on local knowledge, promote research impacts and capacity building while avoiding knowledge mismatches. Lastly, a blueprint for the design and funding of future CZOs, social‐ecological and planetary health research agendas that combine science, social science, local knowledge and KE is presented, including the need for substantive social science research to take place in addition to science research in human‐modified landscapes—enabling the CZ science to be better grounded in, informed by and useful to local communities.

Implementing and evaluating knowledge exchange: Insights from practitioners at the Canadian Forest Service

While there is a growing body of work on the barriers to knowledge exchange (KE) and the development of actionable science, what remains more elusive is an understanding of what strategies and conditions lead to effective KE, how it is operationalized, or how different practitioners define successful exchange of scientific knowledge. We interviewed nine KE practitioners at the Canadian Forest Service (CFS), a national agency, to understand: (1) who at CFS is involved in KE and how they perceive their roles, (2) the strategies for KE used in the CFS and its distribution in a KE typology framework, (3) how KE practitioners define a “successful” exchange of knowledge and KE bright spots, and (4) what conditions enable KE within the CFS. We identified CFS KE practitioners roles as knowledge brokers. They use a cyclical KE strategy that integrates concepts of co-design in operationalizing KE. The CFS KE practitioners engage in a variety of KE activities, but outreach was the most frequently cited. We suggest organizations work closely with intermediary individuals as they hold unique positions of building and maintaining relationships with knowledge users. They can also provide valuable insights in evaluating research impacts such as through contribution stories. The KE typology was a useful tool to inform decisions about KE strategies. Finally, our study emphasizes the need for organizations to adopt more qualitative evaluations to assess the full scope and impact of KE work, and recognizes the integral role of relationships and trust in all aspects of KE work.

Why Is It So Hard to Evaluate Knowledge Exchange? Comment on "Sustaining Knowledge Translation Practices: A Critical Interpretive Synthesis".

Despite a growth in knowledge translation (KT) or exchange activities, and a smaller growth in their evaluations, it remains challenging to identify evidence of efficacy. This could be due to well-documented political and logistical difficulties involved in evaluating knowledge exchange interventions. By bringing in theory from science and technology studies (STS), Borst et al1 offer a new way of thinking about this problem. Most KT evaluations draw on health research traditions; centralising comparability, efficacy, and so on. Borst et al propose focusing on the work it takes to move knowledge over boundaries between these communities, seeing relationships as interactions, not just conduits for evidence. They show how 'context' can be understood as a mutual creation, not a static environment; and that institutions shape behaviours, rather than merely being sites or platforms for evidence mobilisation. Seeing KT as a creative, active practice opens new ways to design and evaluate KT mechanisms.

Incentivizing knowledge exchange engagement: direct and indirect benefits of external engagement

ABSTRACT Engagement in knowledge exchange (KE) with external actors has become widely accepted as an integral mission of universities. However, research and teaching performance remain more important for career progression, while engagement activities are more weakly institutionalized. This raises the question of why academics participate in knowledge exchange engagement activities. This paper examines to what extent academics perceive that they are rewarded directly for KE by their university and to what extent they perceive to benefit in terms of their performance in other missions (research and teaching). Furthermore, we examine how these perceptions are associated with actual engagement behavior. We use data from a sample of academics in seven European universities to examine whether direct and indirect benefits from engagement are linked to engagement in a broad range of KE activities. The results suggest that direct university rewards are associated with less engagement in KE activities, while perceived indirect benefits are associated with more engagement. These relationships are particularly strong in STEM fields.

The impact of teaching on third mission activities of higher education institutions: evidence from the UK

ABSTRACT This study analyses the effect of a change of focus in a traditional mission (teaching) of higher education institutions (HEIs) on the variety and intensity of knowledge exchange (KE) activities. In doing so, it bridges two partially disconnected streams of the literature in science and innovation focusing on HEI missions and heterogeneity in HEI KE activities. The work relies on a longitudinal dataset from UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) comprising information on publicly funded research projects over the 2006–2013 period. Our identification strategy exploits the change in tuition fees following a 2012 reform to proxy for the increased attention to the teaching mission of English and Welsh HEIs compared to other HEIs in the UK. Results show a strong negative effect of the increase in tuition fees on the variety and intensity of KE activities by English and Welsh HEIs. Following the reform, applications for competitive research funding by English and Welsh HEIs did not change in terms of grant length, value and the number of collaborating partners.

Reconceptualising knowledge exchange and higher education institutions: broadening our understanding of motivations, channels, and stakeholders

ABSTRACT This Special Issue represents an effort to go beyond a narrow notion of knowledge exchange (KE) and explicitly address broader questions related to the measurement of and incentives towards KE in Higher education institutions (HEI). Specifically, we bring attention to a number of under-researched topics in the literature. These relate to: (i) The participation of a diverse set of academic actors in KE activities – in particular, academics in emerging economies and women academics – whose role in KE is insufficiently investigated in the extant literature; (ii) academics’ engagement with under-explored KE stakeholders, specifically policymakers and the public sector; and (iii) the tensions and tradeoffs that are implicit, but often unacknowledged, in the relationship between HEIs’ traditional teaching and research activities, and KE as a third institutional mission.

Effects of executives' pro-environmental education and knowledge sharing activities on eco-friendly agricultural production: Evidence from China

With the development of urbanization, the emergence of climate change, and the increase in global population, agricultural production resources are facing enormous environmental pressure for survival and sustainability. Irrefutable impacts of these phenomena on agricultural production resources are recently recognized by environmental stakeholders to develop cleaner and sustainable models to address the challenges. From the environmental innovation and sustainable development perspective, academicians have considered executives' pro-environmental education as a vital mechanism for improving agricultural production resources. For instance, to publicize or promote the concept of agricultural ecological protection, government departments often organize relevant corporate executives to participate in environmental protection courses and training, and environmental knowledge exchange activities, among others in the quest to improve agriculture resources. However, how and under what conditions executives' pro-environmental education, training, and knowledge exchange activities influence agricultural production resources is still unclear and limited in the extant studies. Drawing on the knowledge-based view, this study constructed a research framework to examine the influence of executives' pro-environmental education on eco-friendly agricultural production. The study conducted empirical tests using data from 227 Chinese agricultural enterprises through regression and bootstrap analysis. The result shows that executives' pro-environmental education facilitates eco-friendly agricultural production by promoting the mediating variable managerial environmental concerns, and knowledge sharing activities positively moderates the mediating role of managerial environmental concerns in the relationship between executives' pro-environmental education and eco-friendly agricultural production. This scholarship is one of the rare attempts to scrutinize the integrated impact of executives' pro-environmental education, eco-friendly agricultural production, managerial environmental concerns, and knowledge-sharing activities in the domain of environmental sustainability. It explicitly offers new insights into the existing literature on environmental sustainability; further provides a policymaking reference for the improvement of agricultural enterprises' cleaner production activities.

Distributed innovation, knowledge re-orchestration, and digital product innovation performance: the moderated mediation roles of intellectual property protection and knowledge exchange activities

PurposeDespite the support of digital technology, there is a high degree of ambiguity and fluidity in the boundaries of digital products. This is because the addition of distributed innovation entities has an impact on the scope and scale of digital product innovation. Building upon the knowledge orchestration perspective, this study aims to construct a theoretical model, comprising distributed innovation, knowledge reorchestration and digital product innovation performance, and discuss the moderating roles of intellectual property protection and knowledge exchange activities.Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of 362 Chinese science and technology enterprises, the scholarship’s framework and hypotheses were tested using regression and bootstrap analysis.FindingsThe results confirm that distributed innovation positively enhances enterprises’ digital product innovation performance; knowledge reorchestration plays a partial mediating role in the linkage amongst distributed innovation and digital product innovation performance; and intellectual property protection and knowledge exchange activities negatively and positively moderate the mediating role of knowledge reorchestration amongst distributed innovation and digital product innovation performance, respectively.Originality/valueThis empirical scholarship explores the effect mechanism of intellectual property protection, knowledge exchange activities and knowledge reorchestration on the linkage amongst distributed innovation and digital product innovation performance. This paper expands the theoretical application of distributed innovation, knowledge orchestration and other related theories in the context of the digital economy and further provides a policymaking reference for the improvement of enterprises’ digital product innovations.

Enhancing health outcomes for Māori elders through an intergenerational cultural exchange and physical activity programme: a cross-sectional baseline study.

The study offers baseline data for a strengths-based approach emphasizing intergenerational cultural knowledge exchange and physical activity developed through a partnership with kaumātua (Māori elders) and kaumātua service providers. The study aims to identify the baseline characteristics, along with correlates of five key outcomes. The study design is a cross-sectional survey. A total of 75 kaumātua from six providers completed two physical functioning tests and a survey that included dependent variables based in a holistic model of health: health-related quality of life (HRQOL), self-rated health, spirituality, life satisfaction, and loneliness. The findings indicate that there was good reliability and moderate scores on most variables. Specific correlates included the following: (a) HRQOL: emotional support (β = 0.31), and frequent interaction with a co-participant (β = 0.25); (b) self-rated health: frequency of moderate exercise (β = 0.32) and sense of purpose (β = 0.27); (c) spirituality: sense of purpose (β = 0.46), not needing additional help with daily tasks (β = 0.28), and level of confidence with cultural practices (β = 0.20); (d) life satisfaction: sense of purpose (β = 0.57), frequency of interaction with a co-participant (β = -0.30), emotional support (β = 0.25), and quality of relationship with a co-participant (β = 0.16); and (e) lower loneliness: emotional support (β = 0.27), enjoyment interacting with a co-participant (β = 0.25), sense of purpose (β = 0.24), not needing additional help with daily tasks (β = 0.28), and frequency of moderate exercise (β = 0.18). This study provides the baseline scores and correlates of important social and health outcomes for the He Huarahi Tautoko (Avenue of Support) programme, a strengths-based approach for enhancing cultural connection and physical activity.