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The Pennsylvania State University the Graduate School College Of The Pennsylvania State University The Graduate School College of Information Sciences and Technology AN INVESTIGATION OF CONTEXTUAL FACTORS INFLUENCING THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SUSTAINABLE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY A Thesis in Information Sciences and Technology by Jwee Kiat Benjamin Yeo © 2007 Jwee Kiat Benjamin Yeo Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy August 2007 The thesis of Jwee Kiat Benjamin Yeo was reviewed and approved* by the following: Eileen Trauth Professor of Information Sciences and Technology Thesis Adviser Chair of Committee Steven Sawyer Associate Professor of Information Sciences and Technology Andrea Tapia Assistant Professor of Information Sciences and Technology Christopher Benner Assistant Professor of Geography Joe Lambert Graduate Program Chair, College of Information Sciences and Technology *Signatures are on file in the Graduate School ii ABSTRACT In the current world economy, the most technologically advanced economies are knowledge-based. These countries have utilized knowledge as a crucial factor in production. Information and knowledge are directly productive forces in the knowledge economy, and information becomes the critical raw material of processes and organizations. As governments initiate efforts to develop knowledge production processes in a knowledge economy, the means to develop a sustainable knowledge economy becomes relevant. Three broad veins categorize existing research on the knowledge economy at the macro level. The first looks at theoretical conceptualizations of a secondary information sector that leverages output from the primary information sector for production. The second focuses on specific industries. The third uses innovation as a proxy to study the knowledge economy empirically. The concept of knowledge work is abstract. However, using innovation as a proxy for the knowledge economy, knowledge work can be defined as work involving creation from internalized information. Sustaining innovation then, is partially based on the concept of continuous learning. Therefore, a sustainable knowledge economy can be empirically studied by its base for continuous learning. Using these concepts, this research has two guiding research questions, (1) What contextual factors facilitate continuous learning for a sustainable knowledge economy? and (2) How do these contextual factors affect the sustainability of a knowledge economy? In this research, three interpretive case studies were executed to study empirically the contextual factors that implicate continuous learning in three regions – San Joaquin iii Valley, in California, U.S.A., Ennis, in Ireland, and Singapore. These interpretive case studies utilize the Influence-Impact Model from Trauth’s work (2000) on the information economy in Ireland. The model stresses the important roles played by four contextual factors in the development of an information economy – infrastructure, public policy, economy, and culture. This research employs a theoretical elaboration of this Model to study the development of a sustainable knowledge economy in three regions. In these case studies, three data collection methods – in-depth interviews, document reviews, and participant observation, were triangulated. The results were comprised of 12 common themes across these three regions. These themes were further abstracted for discussion under the four contextual factors to show their inter-relations with one another. In the discussion, three broad implications involving knowledge work, structure of the economy, and social challenges, constitute layers upon which future researchers can build on for different perspectives and empirical investigations. In conclusion, this study makes three theoretical contributions. First, it shows the validity of applying the Influence-Impact Model to study the knowledge economy and varied economic contexts. Second, it shows the inter-relations among the four factors of the Influence-Impact Model, thus, justifying an integrated approach in studying the sustainable knowledge economy. Finally, in using this model, this study developed an in- depth understanding of the knowledge economy that captures the abstract and dynamic characteristics of knowledge work. This level of understanding forms an impetus for further empirical approaches to study a knowledge economy. In addition, the findings constitute a guiding framework for policymakers to focus their investigations on various local conditions to develop locally sensitive policies. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Tables ..................................................................................................................... ix List of Figures..................................................................................................................... x Acknowledgements............................................................................................................ xi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 Organization of Dissertation........................................................................................... 5 CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................ 8 Defining the Knowledge Economy................................................................................. 8 Existing Conceptualizations of the Knowledge Economy.......................................... 8 Framing the knowledge Economy ............................................................................ 13 Definitions and Operationalizations ......................................................................... 17 Theorizing the Economic Shift to the Knowledge Economy ................................... 23 Economic Sustainability and the Knowledge Economy............................................... 26 Innovation and the Knowledge Economy..................................................................... 31 The Social Knowledge Economy.................................................................................. 37 Socio-Cultural Conceptualization of an Economy ................................................... 37 Socio-Cultural Conceptualization of a Knowledge Economy.................................. 42 Theoretical Framework................................................................................................. 47 Conceptualization of the Research Problem................................................................. 52 Guiding Research Questions......................................................................................... 56 CHAPTER 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .............................................................. 58 Choice of a Qualitative Method.................................................................................... 58 The Researcher’s Theoretical Lens........................................................................... 59 v Degree of Uncertainty Surrounding the Phenomenon.............................................. 62 The Research Problem .............................................................................................. 63 The Researcher’s Skills............................................................................................. 65 Academic Politics ..................................................................................................... 66 The Case Study Method................................................................................................ 67 Interpretive Case Study............................................................................................. 70 Data Collection ............................................................................................................. 74 Site Selection ............................................................................................................ 76 Interviews.................................................................................................................. 77 Document Review..................................................................................................... 83 Participant Observation............................................................................................. 85 Coding and Analysis..................................................................................................... 89 Evaluative Criteria ........................................................................................................ 92 CHAPTER 4. FINDINGS................................................................................................. 96 Regional Overview ....................................................................................................... 99 San Joaquin Valley ................................................................................................. 100 Ennis ....................................................................................................................... 103 Singapore ................................................................................................................ 108 Infrastructure............................................................................................................... 111 Industrial Infrastructure .......................................................................................... 112 Information Infrastructure......................................................................................
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