The goal of this research project is to tell the story of acquisition expertise development within the DOD using the evolution of the Defense Acquisition University as its backdrop. It is a story about the persistent frame that claims expertise leads to acquisition success. It is about 40 plus years of competing perspectives of how best to acquire that expertise and their shaping effects. It is about technology choices amidst cultural and political conflict. It is about how budget, users, infrastructure, existing and emerging technologies, identity and geography all interrelate as elements within the technology of expertise development. Finally, it is about how at various times in the evolution of the Defense Acquisition University the technologies of tacit knowledge transfer have been elevated or diminished. / Ph. D.

More and more in recent years, activities that people once did in the real world they now do in virtual space. In particular, online communities have become popular and efficient media for people all over the world to seek and share knowledge in domains that interest them. Such communities are called online knowledge communities (OKCs). Large-scale OKCs may comprise thousands of community members and archive many  more online messages. As a result, problems such as how to identify and manage the knowledge collected and how to understand people\'s knowledge-sharing behaviors have become major challenges for leveraging online knowledge to sustain community growth. In this dissertation I examine three important factors of managing knowledge in OKCs. First, I focus on how to build successful profiles for community members that describe their domain expertise. These expertise profiles are potentially important for directing questions to the right people and, thus, can improve the community\'s overall efficiency and efficacy. To address this issue, I present a comparative study of models of expertise profiling in online communities and identify the model combination that delivers the best results. Next, I investigate how to automatically assess the information helpfulness of user postings. Due to the voluntary nature of online participation, there is no guarantee that all user-generated content (UGC) will be helpful. It is also difficult, given the sheer amount of online postings, for knowledge seekers to find information quickly that satisfies their informational needs. Therefore, I propose a theory-driven text classification framework based on the knowledge adoption model (KAM) for predicting the helpfulness of UGC in OKCs. I test the effectiveness of this framework at both the thread level and the post level of online messages. Any given OKC generally has a huge number of individuals participating in online discussions, but exactly what, where, when and how they seek and share knowledge are still not fully understood or documented. In the last part of the dissertation, I describe a multi-level study of the knowledge-sharing behaviors of users in OKCs. Both exploratory data analysis and network analysis are applied to thread, forum and community levels of online data. I present a number of interesting findings on social dynamics in knowledge sharing and diffusion. These findings potentially have important implications for both the theory and practice of online community knowledge management. / Ph. D.

Yes / The importance of involving members of the public in the development, implementation and dissemination of research is increasingly recognised. There have been calls to share examples of how this can be done, and this paper responds by reporting how professional and lay researchers collaborated on a research study about falls prevention among older patients in English acute hospitals. It focuses on how they worked together in ways that valued all contributions, as envisaged in the UK standards for public involvement for better health and social care research. The paper is itself an example of working together, having been written by a team of lay and professional researchers. It draws on empirical evidence from evaluations they carried out about the extent to which the study took patient and public perspectives into account, as well as reflective statements they produced as co-authors, which, in turn, contributed to the end-of-project evaluation. Lay contributors' deep involvement in the research had a positive effect on the project and the individuals involved, but there were also difficulties. Positive impacts included lay contributors focusing the project on areas that matter most to patients and their families, improving the quality and relevance of outcomes by contributing to data analysis, and feeling they were 'honouring' their personal experience of the subject of study. Negative impacts included the potential for lay people to feel overwhelmed by the challenges involved in achieving the societal or organisational changes necessary to address research issues, which can cause them to question their rationale for public involvement. The paper concludes with practical recommendations for working together effectively in research. These cover the need to discuss the potential emotional impacts of such work with lay candidates during recruitment and induction and to support lay people with these impacts throughout projects; finding ways to address power imbalances and practical challenges; and tips on facilitating processes within lay groups, especially relational processes like the development of mutual trust. / Funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Health and Social Care Delivery Research (HSDR) Programme (Project Number NIHR129488).

No / The purpose of this paper is to explore the determinants of relationship quality (hereafter referred to as RQ) and its impact on customer loyalty within an emerging retail banking market through a dual-lens theory. The research informants were recruited from a city in South-eastern Nigeria. A quantitative data obtained through bank-intercept method and online survey from 332 customers of retail banking services formed the final database. The proposed model and by implication the research hypotheses were tested using partial least squares structural equation modelling procedure. he results show that customer orientation, expertise and information sharing are stimulus factors that directly influence the constructs of RQ (i.e. trust and satisfaction and indirectly influence customer loyalty through the constructs of RQ. The paper also demonstrates that the stimulus factors are direct predictors of consumers’ response. The proposed model explained 49 per cent of the total variance in customer loyalty. Customer orientation, expertise and information sharing are stimulus factors that improve RQ and customer loyalty. However, the explanatory power of the proposed model is modest. Future research should therefore integrate other determinants of RQ. The paper contributes to the growing body of stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) literature within the retail environment by exploring unique stimulus and organism variables from an emerging retail banking market perspective. Additionally, by showing that the stimulus factors are direct predictors of consumers’ response, the paper challenged the existing tenets of the S-O-R framework and deepened the current understanding of the model. The paper also contributes to the social exchange theory by demonstrating how the components of RQ mediate the antecedents and consequences of the construct.

During the 1980s, an acute and deadly epidemic appeared in the United States. AIDS, a disease that initially affected mainly gay men, required a rapid and effective treatment. Due to tough regulations form government agencies and the stigma surrounding the disease, it would take a long time for a treatment to be developed. To break the silence, demand action and push for changes to combat the AIDS epidemic, the activist group ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) was formed. A network formed around their actions that created an environment capable of developing new treatment methods. Using interviews, articles, and reports, this analysis will draw on Actor-Network Theory (ANT) to examine how ACT UP mobilizes lay expertise and navigates conflicts within its network to influence research processes and AIDS treatment. This analysis highlights the mobilization of lay expertise and shows how the constructive management of conflicts within networks can play a crucial role in challenging established research structures, influencing decision-making processes, and ultimately shaping the response to public health crises like the AIDS epidemic.

Various prior research studies have investigated the positive and negative effects of an audience on task performance, yet very little research has been conducted specifically on dancers. The focus of this study will be on the interaction between Goal Orientation and Level of Expertise in relation to social facilitation and task performance in ballet dancers. Participants were assessed based on performance with and without an audience at varying levels of expertise. The theory of social facilitation was examined in relation to several subject variables mentioned in background research. The results of this study suggest a trend supporting the hypothesis that a person's reaction to an audience is at least partly dependent on both Goal Orientation and Level of Expertise as explained by drive theory. This study gives dancers valuable insight on personal performance.

Cette thèse a pour ambition d’analyser un aspect encore mal connu de la transition postsoviétique des États baltes : l’évolution d’une politique étrangère placée entre récepteurs et donneurs d’assistance étrangère au prisme de l’action de parrainage transnational. Nous observons, dans une approche constructiviste, la transformation et la redéfinition des concepts d’identité politique et de solidarité face à l’Autre et le regard que ce dernier porte sur Soi. Malgré l’évolution de cette identité, des continuités persistent : Le rapprochement opéré avec l’Europe de l’Est depuis une dizaine d’années est non seulement l’une de priorités politiques des États baltes, il s’inscrit parallèlement dans leur désir d’aspirer à devenir de « vrais » Européens et d’être perçus comme tels. Cette thèse met en lumière deux dimensions de cette solidarité : la solidarité politique d’une part, la mise en pratique de celle-ci par l’assistance technique, d’autre part. Il s’agit d’abord de comprendre les différentes logiques dans lesquelles s’inscrit la solidarité balte et d’identifier ses acteurs et réseaux. Dans une démarche interdisciplinaire qui croise notamment les mécanismes de Policy Transfer Studies et l’approche historique et comparative, cette thèse s’attache ensuite à mieux définir les processus et les modes de mise en œuvre, ainsi que le rôle des acteurs « émetteurs » (les experts) et leur interaction avec leur partenaires. Elle arrive à la conclusion que les Baltes diffusent et partagent avec les pays du voisinage oriental de l’UE principalement l’expérience qu’ils ont acquise, s’inspirant logiquement de l’action nordique de parrainage dont ils ont bénéficié au cours des années 1990. / This doctoral thesis aims to analyse one of the less known aspects of Baltic transition: the evolution of their foreign policy between receptors and donors of foreign assistance through transnational patronage (1985-2013). In line with the constructivist school of thought, we observe how the concept of political identity and solidarity changes, redefines itself towards the Other and the perception that the latter has on the Self. Notwithstanding the changes in this identity, some continuities seem to persist: The rapprochment with Eastern Europe over the past ten years could viewed as one of the priorities of the Baltic States but it also stems from the desire of these States to become and to be considered as “fully” European. This thesis sheds some light over the two dimensions of this solidarity: the political solidarity and support on the one hand, and its implementation through technical assistance to reforms and trainings of Georgian, Ukrainian and Moldovan elites, on the other hand. In order to better observe how the solidarity is expressed, this study attempts to understand the different logics of the Baltics solidarity, to identify different actors and networks involved. In an interdisciplinary approach intersecting the mechanisms of PTS and the historical and comparative approach, this study takes then focuses on the processes and methods of the implementation, the role of the actors “donors” and their interaction with their partners. It concludes that Baltic States diffuse and share with the Eastern neighbours of EU mostly their own experience inspired from the Nordic States’ patronage action towards the Baltics during the 1990.

Cette thèse a pour ambition d’analyser un aspect encore mal connu de la transition postsoviétique des États baltes : l’évolution d’une politique étrangère placée entre récepteurs et donneurs d’assistance étrangère au prisme de l’action de parrainage transnational. Nous observons, dans une approche constructiviste, la transformation et la redéfinition des concepts d’identité politique et de solidarité face à l’Autre et le regard que ce dernier porte sur Soi. Malgré l’évolution de cette identité, des continuités persistent : Le rapprochement opéré avec l’Europe de l’Est depuis une dizaine d’années est non seulement l’une de priorités politiques des États baltes, il s’inscrit parallèlement dans leur désir d’aspirer à devenir de « vrais » Européens et d’être perçus comme tels. Cette thèse met en lumière deux dimensions de cette solidarité : la solidarité politique d’une part, la mise en pratique de celle-ci par l’assistance technique, d’autre part. Il s’agit d’abord de comprendre les différentes logiques dans lesquelles s’inscrit la solidarité balte et d’identifier ses acteurs et réseaux. Dans une démarche interdisciplinaire qui croise notamment les mécanismes de Policy Transfer Studies et l’approche historique et comparative, cette thèse s’attache ensuite à mieux définir les processus et les modes de mise en œuvre, ainsi que le rôle des acteurs « émetteurs » (les experts) et leur interaction avec leur partenaires. Elle arrive à la conclusion que les Baltes diffusent et partagent avec les pays du voisinage oriental de l’UE principalement l’expérience qu’ils ont acquise, s’inspirant logiquement de l’action nordique de parrainage dont ils ont bénéficié au cours des années 1990. / This doctoral thesis aims to analyse one of the less known aspects of Baltic transition: the evolution of their foreign policy between receptors and donors of foreign assistance through transnational patronage (1985-2013). In line with the constructivist school of thought, we observe how the concept of political identity and solidarity changes, redefines itself towards the Other and the perception that the latter has on the Self. Notwithstanding the changes in this identity, some continuities seem to persist: The rapprochment with Eastern Europe over the past ten years could viewed as one of the priorities of the Baltic States but it also stems from the desire of these States to become and to be considered as “fully” European. This thesis sheds some light over the two dimensions of this solidarity: the political solidarity and support on the one hand, and its implementation through technical assistance to reforms and trainings of Georgian, Ukrainian and Moldovan elites, on the other hand. In order to better observe how the solidarity is expressed, this study attempts to understand the different logics of the Baltics solidarity, to identify different actors and networks involved. In an interdisciplinary approach intersecting the mechanisms of PTS and the historical and comparative approach, this study takes then focuses on the processes and methods of the implementation, the role of the actors “donors” and their interaction with their partners. It concludes that Baltic States diffuse and share with the Eastern neighbours of EU mostly their own experience inspired from the Nordic States’ patronage action towards the Baltics during the 1990.

Cette thèse se propose d’explorer les modalités de constitution d’un domaine de production de savoirs dits académiques dépendant du pouvoir politique. La première partie examine la convergence de trajectoires individuelles vers une activité relativement nouvelle, située au carrefour de champ professionnels et centrée sur l’analyse de la politique étrangère turque menée depuis 2003 par le gouvernement du parti AKP. Partant de là, la seconde partie s’attache plus particulièrement aux liens des acteurs de l’espace identifié avec les responsables gouvernementaux. Il apparaît que ce domaine constitue un champ d’activité dont la structure concentrique découle de la proximité d’une communauté épistémique en son sein avec le champ politique. Par voie d’institutionnalisation et de cooptation du reste du champ, les membres de cette communauté parviennent à imposer une conception utilitaire des sciences sociales permettant de produire des savoirs convergent avec les priorités politiques du moment. La troisième partie examine donc le contenu de ces savoirs de sorte à démontrer le rôle de médiateur joué par le champ expert. Il se confirme alors que sa vocation est de convaincre diverses parties-prenantes, en Turquie et à l’étranger, de la légitimité et l’opportunité du projet hégémonique du gouvernement turc en direction du Moyen-Orient arabe. En définitive, par l’étude de cette configuration experte, a été aussi posé la question de la profondeur de la rupture créée par l’AKP dans le mode de gouvernement et les orientations géopolitique de la Turquie. L’analyse conclut à une rupture dans la continuité / This Ph. D. research offers an opportunity to explore the form of dependency to political power maintained by a self-labelled academic knowledge production domain. This study is based on the case study of Turkish Middle Eastern policy expertise. The first part examines the convergence of individual trajectories towards a relatively new activity in Turkey, located at the intersection of various professional fields and centered on the analysis of the AKP government foreign policy since 2003. The second part then focuses on the links that exist between the previously identified actors and statesmanship. It soon appears that this knowledge production forms a field of activity which concentric structure derives from the proximity of the epistemic community at its very center with the political arena. Through institutionalization and cooptation with the State’s material support, the epistemic community members manage to impose its utilitarian conception of social sciences to the whole expertise field, thereby bringing its actors to design knowledge convergent with the time’s policy priorities. The last part of this work consists of a study of this expertise’s content in order to demonstrate the go-between function played by experts. It appears ultimately that their mission is to convince foreign policy stakeholders in Turkey and abroad of the legitimacy and opportunity of Turkey’s hegemonic project towards the Arab Middle East (2003-2013). Finally, through the study of this expert configuration, it is the question of policy change and geopolitical shift that has been examined. The thesis concludes on the hypothesis of change within continuity

L'objectif de cette thèse est double. D'une part, elle vise à réinterroger les débats internes à la Sociologie qui semblent vouloir opposer une discipline académique et une discipline dite professionnelle. L'enjeu est de montrer en quoi ces deux univers, que certains opposent, ne sont pas s'y éloignés que ça l'un de l'autre ou tout du moins, se rejoignent en de nombreux points et doivent chacun répondre à des contraintes de production du savoir. D'autre part, elle a pour ambition de montrer que la production intellectuelle à la demande, c'est-à-dire celle menée au sein d'une entreprise, peut répondre aux attentes et aux exigences de chaque univers. En prenant pour objet d'étude la consommation des fruits et des légumes, nous avons pu démontrer en premier lieu, grâce à la description et l'analyse transversale des données, à la fois auprès des consommateurs et des professionnels de l'univers des fruits et des légumes, que les résultats ont une dimension opérationnelle forte. Par ailleurs, grâce à la modélisation AEP - Attachement, Expertise, Partage - notre travail de thèse permet d'enrichir les modèles d'analyse théorique déjà existants. L'ambition étant alors d'aller un cran plus loin dans la modélisation puisque notre recherche montre le lien qui existe entre ces trois dimensions et comment elles sont reliées les unes aux autres pour mettre en avant une typologie d'acteurs. / This thesis have a double objective. In one hand, it means to re-interrogate the internal debates that seems to oppose academic and professional Sociology. The goal is to show how these two sides of our discipline, which some oppose, are not that different one from another. It converge in many ways and have to fit with knowledge production constraints. In another hand, it tries to show that intellectual research on demand, which is asked in a company, can meet the expectations and requirements of any universe. By taking fruits and vegetables consumption as object of research we first demonstrated, thanks to the data's description and analysis of professional and consumers close to fruits and vegetables, that the results have a huge operational dimension. By the way, thanks to the AES's modelisation - Attachment, Expertise, Social link - our thesis enriches the analytical theoretical models that already exists. The ambition is to go further into the modelisation by defining a consumer's typology and to show that a link subsists between these three dimensions and behavioural structures, dependents one to another.