Essentially this study is founded upon the culture-specific thesis that organisational processes are influenced to a large extent by the cultural settings in which they operate. Hence management processes such as the management of innovations in organisations; ought to be culturally relative. The main objectives of this study are: i to identify, the major cultural values of the Sarawak Malays of relevance to the facilitation or inhibition of "innovatogenic" behaviour in an organisational context ii to identify, assess and evaluate active strategies used to nurture "innovatogenic" behaviour in some Malay organisations in response to these cultural influences, with due attention being paid to both thoses trategies which exploit any positive influence and those which aim to overcome any negative influence of such cultural values iii to highlight issues worthy of consideration in developing 'culturally' appropriate' strategies to nurture 'innovatogenic' behaviour (In particular, the study aims to demonstrate that (i) the innovation process is culture specific and (ii) any strategies employed must take a holistic approach and ensure that the both the structural aspects and ideational aspects of such strategies are congruent with each other). A qualitative research involving two phases of fieldwork was employed: Phase 1 . The Key Informant Interview. Unstructured interviews were conducted with twenty senior managers. These managers were purposely selected for their vast experience in managing Malay workers, both at managerial and operative levels. These interviews focused on two aspects: (a) their views and perspectives regarding Malay cultural values and beliefs and whether these values and beliefs had any impact on their 'innovation producing' behaviour. (b) The strategies used to incorporate these values and beliefs into their managerial philosophies and practices. Phase 2. Case studies of three selected organisations. A month was spent in each of three organisations; collecting information on eight key aspects of the organisations: strategic focus, management/leadership style; management attitude/orientation- . infrastructure, task structure, ideas management, performance management and orgarlisational climate. Both interview and survey methods of data collection were employed. The Ekvall's Creative Climate Questionnairew as then used to assesst he creative climate of the organisations. Data analysis was guided by a conceptual framework that linked the capability. means, and motivation of individuals to behave' innovatogenrically' with the structural and ideational features of the organisation. The main findings of the study indicate that (i) Malays are very concerned with maintaining harmonious relationship with superiors and peers. A tendency for collective behaviour, a need for personalised relationships, deference to leaders, loyalty to group and leader, and a focus on social benefit of an action to group and self were key features of this realtionship orientation Consequently, Malay organisations seem to be characterised by socially determined form of work relationship and priorities that are not conducive to the generation and exploitation of ideas. ii Organisational behaviour is culture specific: the social beliefs , values and customs of a society and the concomitant impact of these on organisational behaviour is significant and cannot be ignored. Subjective interpretations of strategies, procedures and practices by members of an organisation shapes their behaviour in relation to them. As such, an organisation cannot be made innovative through the introduction ( or imposition) of new strategies or mechanismws ithout due considerationsto the dominanti deationalm oder elating to theses trategiesa nd mechanism.

My dissertation is composed of three sections. The first section examines the effect of monetary incentives on student performance in public education in Texas. I address how to deal with non-random samples caused by self-selection bias by using propensity score matching method. For the second part, using household level panel data, it addresses the substantial heterogeneity across demographic groups. In addition, for the last section, I also investigate firm’s optimal innovation strategy. It addresses the relationship among firm growth, firm size and firm behavior in the U.S. manufacturing industry. The first section investigates the causal relationship between a teacher incentive program (District Awards for Teacher Excellence (D.A.T.E.) Program) and student academic achievement in Texas by using school-grade level panel data. I find that D.A.T.E. schools obtain significantly higher student achievement gains in reading and math than non-D.A.T.E. schools after the implementation of the program. In addition, D.A.T.E. schools implementing selected school plan obtain greater student achievement gains than those implementing district wide plan. However, the causal effects are found mainly among middle school. Importantly, these findings imply that the teacher incentive program could be an effective policy tool in Texas for developing student performance, but should be cautiously implemented due to the difference in effects according to the U.S. school level. The second section shows that while financial benefit and moral hazard appears to be the main cause of bankruptcy for less educated individuals, well-educated individuals file due to negative income shocks. This is consistent with some evidence suggesting that educated individuals face greater stigma and/or worse information regarding bankruptcy than less-educated individuals. Importantly, these results imply that optimal bankruptcy policy should likely vary across different demographic groups. In the third section, I find that firm size is negatively related to firm growth and positively correlated with firm survivability in the manufacturing industry. R&D investment has a significantly positive effect on firm growth and survivability in the same industry. In the services industry, advertising investment causes a reverse effect on firm growth. This suggests that innovative activities should vary depending on the characteristics of each industry.

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy / Information and communication technology (ICT) advances relating to the architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) sector have been rapid, offering efficiency gains and improved business effectiveness. However economic considerations, industry-specific conditions, legal, and business issues have limited their adoption by multi-firm project teams. ICT adoption rates are the manifestation of boundedly rational business decisions, formed by personal attitudes to innovation. Although attitudes are personal constructs they are phenomena that are experienced, can be personally reported, and observed from a distance. This research maps attitudinal influences wherein the attitudinal profiles of decision-makers can be located. Adopting etic and emic perspectives it reveals independent indication of the extent and features of the phenomenon, and the personal construction of meaning and rules for decision-making. These perspectives are obtained using an asynchronous, online Delphi study of 13 international experts, combined with investigation of the phenomenological experiences of 39 experienced practitioners through in-depth interviews. Thematic analysis, supported by appropriate correlation analysis reveals patterns and structure in each study, which are modeled. These are then synthesised into a unified, multi-dimensional model. This model reveals that individual attitude is composed of a number of components: exogenous issues include human, technological and business processes; an endogenous component relating to personal considerations; technological push, cultural pull, and a temporal dimension. It posits intra-firm and inter-organisational dimensions, observing variance along a continuum related to the context within which they are being considered. The significance of this research is twofold: it maps the domain within which ICT decision-makers in the AEC sector make their decisions; it provides a reliable basis upon which to base further investigations.

Zugl.: Hagen, Fernuniv., Diplomarbeit, 2005

Zugl.: Dresden, Techn. Univ., Diss., 2006

Zugl.: Erlangen, Nürnberg, University, Diplomarbeit, 2006 u.d.T.: Koolman, Klaas: Der Fit zwischen Markenprofilen und Ausprägungen von Marketinginnovationen.

Techn. Universiẗat, Diss., 2005--Darmstadt.

Diss. Stockholm : Handelshögskolan, 2006.

Diplom-Arbeit--München, 2006.

Eidgenössische Techn. Hochsch., Diss.--Zürich, 2006.