Hi-tech companies that want to innovate their products use, quite often, and quite naturally, technology as a driver. But, technology is only one of several drivers of change within product development. It is becoming more and more accessible and alone, cannot serve as the only mean to stay competitive.  This research sheds light on a different driver of innovation – namely, through the perspective of “meaning”. An innovation, driven by the search for a new meaning of a product, is connected to the purpose of “why” a product is used. It is not about “how” it is used. In this sense, innovations driven by meaning, are connected to a human’s new experience of use – rather than to the improvement of an existing performance. This type of innovation builds on people and their interpretation of why a product or service make sense in their life and therefore, it is subjective rather than objective. It represents a move, from the classic business perspectives of optimization and control to approach the unpredictable and ambiguous views of humans in a wider, cultural context.    A company that reconsidered the meaning of their product, is Germany-based KUKA with their “RoboCoaster”. This product uses existing technology to transform an industrial robot from a powerful, efficient and accurate tool into an exciting amusement ride system, delivering excitement, enjoyment and pleasurable fear. Another example is the Da Vinci surgical system in which, instead of replacing humans in an industrial application, a robot interacts with humans by acting as a surgeon in performing invasive surgery.  Through finding new applications of existing technologies – (the Robocoaster )– or through new technologies (the Da Vinci surgical system) – these products are not “better” than existing industrial robots: they have changed the reason why people use them.  But, theories on how to innovate with a “meaning” perspective, (i.e. on how to develop new interpretations for products and services) are rare. Indeed, dominant streams of innovation research have been connected to problem solving (Simon, 1996, Clark, 1985, Pahl and Beitz, 1988, Clark and Fujimoto, 1991, Teece et al., 1997 , Krishnan and Ulrich 2001) or idea generation (Brown, 2008, Martin, 2007). This research instead, set the focus on the context. It is a move from a cognitive focus to a social one. A move from user driven innovation strategies to also embrace a wider network of actors in the process of interpretation. The nature of this innovation is different and therefore, it requires a different approach. In this licentiate thesis the nature of innovation of meaning is examined and its relevance and practice discussed with the help of hermeneutics. The research suggests that innovation of meaning calls for new theoretical frames in innovation studies: from innovation as a process of problem solving and creative thinking to innovation as a process of interpreting and envisioning.

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This thesis offers an interpretation of how eight male primary school teachers experience touch between themselves and their pupils/students. Despite the positive benefits of touch and evidence suggesting that appropriate forms of touch should be encouraged, the many meanings, interpretations and reactions to touch potentially complicate the ways in which people react. The potential for touch to enhance human well-being is therefore often diminished. The taboo surrounding touch is particularly evident in the school environment where limited research has been undertaken. This study gives voice to male teachers as they share their experiences in an era when the risks associated with physical contact between teachers and pupils are increasing. Hermeneutic phenomenology was used to explore and gain deeper understanding of the meaning of touch in education through interpreting the day to day experiences of male primary school teachers in New Zealand. Narrative interviews were interpreted and described thematically. The themes: ‘being careful, cautious and visible’, ‘worrying about misinterpretation’, ‘feeling sad’ and ‘battling with boundaries’, revealed a complex array of tensions that contributed to the findings. Male primary school teachers are constantly aware of the risk they take when interacting with students. They experience tensions and conflict when deciding where and how they will touch children and whether this will be misinterpreted by others. Consideration of the ways in which people respond to this complex and sensitive subject is necessary so that male teachers feel able to use positive and appropriate forms of touch without fear of suspicion and reprisal.

Thesis (M. Div.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, 2006. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 70-73).

Thesis (M. Div.)--St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, 1987. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 52-54).

Thesis (M.A.)--Catholic University of America, 1990. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves [93]-98).

Univ., Diss.--Umeå, 2001. / Literaturverz. S. 203 - 213.

Thesis (M.A.)--Duquesne University, 2003. / Title from document title page. Abstract included in electronic submission form. Includes bibliographical references (p. 85-94).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago Divinity School, August 1999. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago Divinity School, August 1999. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.