The national system of innovation (NSI) is well entrenched within South Africa’s policy discourse, as a conceptual framework for understanding the nature and functioning of the country’s totality of science and technology efforts. The NSI is proving to be a powerful concept in that it permits, for instance, a holistic view of how scientific activity relates to economic performance. However, the NSI is a relatively new construct in the South African context. For this reason, there is a need for a proper understanding of what constitutes the NSI, how it functions and how best to make sense of it. This study undertakes a hermeneutic exploration and assessment of the NSI as a conceptual framework for understanding the structure and performance of knowledge institutions within South Africa. To this end, the NSI concept is unbundled into its constituent elements and then subjected to a deep theoretical analysis in order to critically examine the core ideas behind the constituent terms. Drawing on the writer’s hermeneutic-phenomenological input, the study critically examines the salient features of the NSI as they find expression in various official science and technology policy documents and reports. The elements that make up South Africa’s national system of innovation are identified and their roles defined. An argument is presented as to why, collectively, these elements demonstrate system behaviour. Chaos and complexity frameworks are then employed to shape a conceptual platform to underpin this philosophical enquiry with an ultimate view to developing a robust theoretical framework of the NSI. The study demonstrates the usefulness of chaos and complexity in explaining, for example, the evolution and current organisation of the NSI. Recommendations have been made about how chaos and complexity perspectives could be applied in general and strategic management of the NSI, as well as in research. / Thesis (M.Sc.Eng.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

This study examines the decision-making activities and communicative activities of two groups participating in a simulated medical emergency activity: the control group (CG) using a traditional whiteboard and the experimental group (EG) using a structured interactive whiteboard. The two groups differ in that the EG has a structured template to annotate and share their arguments with each other. Data analysis of the decision-making activities focused on planning, data collecting, managing, and interpreting patient data. Data analysis of the communicative activities focused on informative, argumentative, elicitative, responsive, and directive acts. In the early stage of decision-making the EG spent significantly more time interpreting the situation and less time managing the patient than the CG; in the later stage the EG spent significantly more time managing the patient but less time interpreting the situation. No significant results were found in communicative activities due to low cell frequencies of the utterances. Qualitative results indicated that shared visualizations can disambiguate and clarify verbal interactions and promote productive argumentation and negotiation activities. Shared cognition facilitates the construction of shared situation models and joint problem spaces which lead to better decision making and problem solving.

How does technological change alter the position and the configuration of groups of producers in an industry? This dissertation examines the transformations in the strategic groups of two manufacturing industries that introduced radically new manufacturing processes. The primary textile market during the period 1958 to 1978 with the introduction of synthetic fibers, introduced a large-scale process production. In the steel industry during the period 1965 to 1985, small-scale process production was introduced with the technology of mini-mills. / The impact of new manufacturing processes on the economic position of producers in the industry has been examined conventionally by the research in strategic management, which used with the set of business strategies developed by the positioning school (i.e., cost leadership, differentiation and focus). Where the cost structure is the determinant of the profitability of a manufacturer, strategic groups are expected to establish their position in terms of scale and scope (Porter 1980, Aaker, 1984, Day, 1990). / Our findings lead us to introduce a different view of the topic by focusing on competition between strategic groups having different centers of gravity. A center of gravity has been defined by Galbraith (1983) as the primary location of a producer in the economic chain of transformation. We found that large-scale and small-scale manufacturing processes have radically different impacts since these processes are intimately associated with specific centers of gravity. / Large-scale manufacturing processes create conditions for the formation of generalists with a strong center of gravity at the upstream primary manufacturing stage engaged in processes such as casting, cutting and forming. This strategic group of generalists establishes a dominant position in the industry in two stages: a cost leadership strategy followed by integrative strategies such as upstream and downstream vertical integration and ultimately, product diversification. Since manufacturers serve the same geographical market, we have a configuration of competing strategic groups. / Small-scale manufacturing processes create conditions for the formation of mid-size producers that we have called semi-generalists and semi-specialists. These strategic groups have a strong center of gravity at the downstream manufacturing stage and are engaged in processes such as as assembling and finishing. They have smaller scale facilities, are not vertically integrated, and sell a narrower product range than generalists. Since they are located closer to industrial centers and dedicated to specific industries, they compete on factors other than price, such as geographic location, product differentiation, service, etc. These strategic groups of medium-size producers challenge the dominance of generalists by restructuring the market into a set of regional markets. The configuration of strategic groups is shaped by generic groups of manufacturers competing in different geographical markets. / The set of business strategies proposed by the positioning school was adequate for large-scale processes. However, this set of strategies was largely inappropriate in a context where small-scale processes are introduced.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 190-205).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Discipline of Economics, School of Economics and Political Science, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Sydney, 2006. / Title from title screen (viewed 5th June, 2007). Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy to the Discipline of Economics, School of Economics and Political Science, Faculty of Economics and Business. Degree awarded 2006. Bibliography: leaves 308-331. Also issued in print.

Thesis (M.A.)--Carleton University, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 170-182). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, 2006. / Adviser: Yan Xu. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1968. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 328-340).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--UCLA, 2008. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 87-92).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--George Mason University, 1995. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 255-263).