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Knowledge Structures (knowledge + structure)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Business, Economics, Finance and Accounting	52%
Psychology	29%

Selected Abstracts

The Relationships between Knowledge Structures and Appraisals of Economically Disadvantaged Adolescents

APPLIED PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 4 2010
Gülden Güvenç
The study's objective was to test adolescents' self-regulation based upon Cervone, Shadel, Smith, and Fiori's (2006) knowledge and appraisal personality architecture model. Self-regulation was defined as the relationships between knowledge structures (enduring mental representations of the world) and appraisal processes (dynamic meanings constructed to evaluate various events). In our study, the knowledge variables were authoritarianism and locus of control while appraisal variables were categorized as personal orientation (coping, communication, self-esteem) and relational orientation (perspective taking, empathy, prosocial behavior tendency). The purpose of the study was to identify the relationships between these variables and compare gender differences for each indicator. The participants were 246 adolescents (125 males and 121 females) whose ages ranged between 12 and 15 and who were the inhabitants of a poor urban neighborhood in Ankara, Turkey. The results showed that external locus of control and authoritarianism were not related, while the former was negatively related to both personal and relational orientations and authoritarianism was positively related to only relational orientation. Boys' external locus of control was higher than girls', whereas girls' scores exceeded boys' in self-reliant coping with stress, open communication, and interpersonal reactivity. No gender differences were observed for authoritarianism, prosocial behavior tendency, and self-esteem. Notre projet était d'estimer l'autorégulation des adolescents à partir du modèle structurale de connaissances et d'évaluation de la personnalité de Cervone, Shadel, Smith et Fiori (2006). L'autorégulation recouvre les relations entre les connaissances (les représentations stables du monde) et les processus d'évaluation (les significations dynamiques élaborées pour apprécier différents évènements). Dans notre recherche, les variables de connaissances étaient l'autoritarisme et le locus of control tandis que les variables d'évaluation étaient regroupées sous les rubriques « orientation personnelle » (faire-face, communication, estime de soi) et « orientation relationnelle » (changement de point de vue, empathie, tendance à adopter un comportement favorable aux autres). Ce travail cherchait à identifier les relations entre ces dimensions et à comparer les différences dues au genre pour chacun des indicateurs. Les sujets étaient 246 adolescents (125 garçons et 121 filles) entre douze et quinze ans qui habitent un quartier pauvre d'Ankara (Turquie). Les résultats montrent qu'un locus of control externe et l'autoritarisme ne sont pas en rapport, alors que le premier est corrélé négativement aux orientations personnelle et relationnelle ; l'autoritarisme n'est lié positivement qu'à l'orientation relationnelle. Le locus of control externe des garçons est supérieur à celui des filles alors que les scores des filles dépassent ceux des garçons dans le traitement autonome du stress, la communication libre et la sensibilité interpersonnelle. Les deux genres se rejoignent sur l'autoritarisme, la tendance à adopter un comportement favorable aux autres et l'estime de soi. [source]

Implicit and explicit measures of prejudice and stereotyping: do they assess the same underlying knowledge structure?

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 6 2004
Michaël Dambrun
Do implicit and explicit measures of ethnic attitudes assess the same underlying knowledge structure in long term memory? This study uses both a correlational and an experimental design (N,=,133) in order to address this central question. In the first part, we suggest that self-presentational strategies can partly explain why the relation between implicit and explicit measures is inconsistent in the existing literature. More specifically, we show that when there are strong norms against prejudice, implicit and explicit measures are significantly negatively related. In the second part, an experimental manipulation of relative gratification (RG), the opposite of relative deprivation, reveals that when the level of explicit prejudice increases (RG condition), a similar effect is also observed at the implicit level. Together, these results suggest that implicit and explicit measures assess similar knowledge structure. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Understanding the structure of audit workpaper error knowledge and its relationship with workpaper review performance

ACCOUNTING & FINANCE, Issue 3 2010
Noel Harding
M42 Abstract This study examines the veracity of two important, yet untested, premises underlying the interpretation of hierarchical variation in workpaper review performance. Prior research has argued that auditors at different hierarchical levels structure their knowledge of workpaper errors differently, and that these differences in knowledge structure give rise to hierarchical variation in the ability of auditors to identify mechanical and conceptual workpaper errors. This study directly examines the way in which audit firm managers, seniors and staff auditors structure their knowledge of audit workpaper errors and finds variation across hierarchical levels. These differences in knowledge structure were found to be associated with variation in workpaper review performance as they related to the identification of conceptual errors, but not, as proposed in prior research, mechanical workpaper errors. These results guide future research efforts aimed at improving workpaper review performance. [source]

Using concept mapping principles in PowerPoint

EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF DENTAL EDUCATION, Issue 4 2007
I. M. Kinchin
Abstract:, The use of linear PowerPoint templates to support lectures may inadvertently encourage dental students to adopt a passive approach to learning and a narrow appreciation of the field of study. Such presentations may support short-term learning gains and validate assessment regimes that promote surface learning approaches at the expense of developing a wider appreciation of the field that is necessary for development of clinical expertise. Exploitation of concept mapping principles can provide a balance for the negative learning behaviour that is promoted by the unreflective use of PowerPoint. This increases the opportunities for students to access holistic knowledge structures that are indicators of expertise. We illustrate this using the example of partial denture design and show that undergraduates' grasp of learning and teaching issues is sufficiently sophisticated for them to appreciate the implications of varying the mode of presentation. Our findings indicate that students understand the strategic value of bullet-pointed presentations for short-term assessment goals and the benefits of deep learning mediated by concept mapping that may support longer term professional development. Students are aware of the tension between these competing agendas. [source]

Automated explanation of financial data

INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS IN ACCOUNTING, FINANCE & MANAGEMENT, Issue 1-2 2009
H. A. M. Daniels
We describe a methodology for explanation generation in financial knowledge-based systems. This offers the possibility to generate explanations and diagnostics automatically to support business decision tasks. The central goal is the identification of specific knowledge structures and reasoning methods required to construct computerized explanations from financial data and models. A multistep look-ahead algorithm is proposed that deals with so-called cancelling-out effects, which are a common phenomenon in financial data sets. Our method is an extension of the traditional variance decomposition in accounting. The method was tested on a case-study conducted for Statistics Netherlands involving the comparison of financial figures of firms in the Dutch retail branch. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [source]

Organizing learning materials through hierarchical topic maps: an illustration through Chinese herb medication

JOURNAL OF COMPUTER ASSISTED LEARNING, Issue 6 2007
B.-J. Shih
Abstract This research aims to use hierarchical topic maps to compile digital learning material and to discuss its design and application possibilities. The system renders tremendous original assets and then embeds a self-organizing map (SOM) in the material database to produce topical learning materials, as in this case, an illustration through Chinese herb medication. It helps to demonstrate robust professional information as well as knowledge structures, and provides a customized and interactive learning dynamic to support both progressive and constructive learning styles. The paper first gives a detailed procedural description of the material construction, explains how topic map techniques were applied, and observes the implications and potentials of the technology to education. Both the technical and educational evaluations of using SOM topic maps in compilation of learning materials have resulted in positive feedback. SOM allows users to review the complete databank in structural hierarchical order, which provides comprehensive understanding of the entire set of learning materials, and also brings opportunities to users to discover knowledge related to their study area. [source]

Users want more sophisticated search assistants: Results of a task-based evaluation

JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, Issue 13 2005
Udo Kruschwitz
The Web provides a massive knowledge source, as do intranets and other electronic document collections. However, much of that knowledge is encoded implicitly and cannot be applied directly without processing into some more appropriate structures. Searching, browsing, question answering, for example, could all benefit from domain-specific knowledge contained in the documents, and in applications such as simple search we do not actually need very "deep" knowledge structures such as ontologies, but we can get a long way with a model of the domain that consists of term hierarchies. We combine domain knowledge automatically acquired by exploiting the documents' markup structure with knowledge extracted on the fly to assist a user with ad hoc search requests. Such a search system can suggest query modification options derived from the actual data and thus guide a user through the space of documents. This article gives a detailed account of a task-based evaluation that compares a search system that uses the outlined domain knowledge with a standard search system. We found that users do use the query modification suggestions proposed by the system. The main conclusion we can draw from this evaluation, however, is that users prefer a system that can suggest query modifications over a standard search engine, which simply presents a ranked list of documents. Most interestingly, we observe this user preference despite the fact that the baseline system even performs slightly better under certain criteria. [source]

A blueprint for the implementation of process-oriented knowledge management

KNOWLEDGE AND PROCESS MANAGEMENT: THE JOURNAL OF CORPORATE TRANSFORMATION, Issue 4 2003
Ulrich Remus
Process-oriented Knowledge Management aims at the integration of business processes and knowledge management. In order to provide knowledge for value adding activities within the business processes KM instruments and KM systems have to be adapted to business and knowledge processes. In detail, KM instruments such as content management, skill management, lessons learned, and communities have to be assigned to KM activities and processes. Models and patterns that describe generic pKM processes can build a blueprint for the implementation and support the stepwise integration of business processes into the knowledge life cycle. The introduction of a pKM becomes more efficient, as the flexibility is increased and the complexity is reduced. In this paper the authors show the essential elements of a blueprint developed during the implementation of a pKM in a large transaction bank. The blueprint describes the essential knowledge structures, activities, processes and instruments on different layers of abstraction in the context of a continuous knowledge life cycle. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Valuing of firms' prior knowledge: a measure of knowledge distance

KNOWLEDGE AND PROCESS MANAGEMENT: THE JOURNAL OF CORPORATE TRANSFORMATION, Issue 2 2003
Shantha Liyanage
Knowledge, especially scientific and technological knowledge, grows according to knowledge trajectories and guideposts that make up the prior knowledge of an organization. We argue that these knowledge structures and their specific components lead to successful innovation. A firm's prior knowledge facilitates the absorption of new knowledge, thereby renewing a firm's systematic search, transfer and acquisition of knowledge and capabilities. In particular, the exponential growth in biotechnology is characterized by the convergence of disparate scientific and technological knowledge resources. This paper examines the shift from protein-based to DNA-based diagnostic technologies as an example, to quantify the value of a firm's prior knowledge using relative values of knowledge distance. The distance between core prior knowledge and the rate of transition from one knowledge system to another has been identified as a proxy for the value a firm's prior knowledge. The overall ,difficulty of transition' from one technology paradigm to another is discussed. We argue this transition is possible when the knowledge distance is minimal and the transition process has a correspondingly high value of absorptive capacities. Our findings show knowledge distance is a determinant of the feasibility, continuity and capture of scientific and technological knowledge. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

Exploring consumer knowledge structures using associative network analysis

PSYCHOLOGY & MARKETING, Issue 4 2010
Thorsten A. Teichert
This paper offers a new perspective on consumer knowledge analysis that combines Human Associative Memory (HAM) models from cognitive psychology with network analytic approaches in order to gain deeper insights into consumers" mental representations, such as brand images. An illustrative case study compares the associative networks of a manufacturer brand with a retail brand and is used to demonstrate the application and interpretation of various network measures. Network analysis is conducted on three levels: Node-level analysis yields insights about salient brand image components that can be affected through short-term marketing activities. Group-level analysis is concerned with brand image dimensions that characterize a brand and can be strategically influenced in the medium term. Finally, network-level analysis examines the network structure as a whole, drawing parallels to brand imagery, which needs to be managed over the long term. Management implications are derived and suggestions for further research are provided. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source]

Mapping consumers' mental models with ZMET

PSYCHOLOGY & MARKETING, Issue 6 2002
Glenn L. Christensen
In the quest to understand the customer, consumer researchers, whether practitioner or academic, must understand the perceived personal relevance of a product, service, or brand from the consumers' perspective. Fundamentally, what must be understood are the cognitive structures or mental models that underlie consumers' feelings of involvement. This article demonstrates the power of the Zaltman metaphor-elicitation technique (ZMET) (Zaltman, 1997) to gain such consumer insight by first eliciting and then mapping consumers' knowledge structures. The article provides illustrations of how ZMET can be used to create a collective cognitive map for a group of consumers, and how ZMET data can be mapped in different ways to give greater insight into consumers' product knowledge structures. Also provided is a description of how the knowledge structures of consumers are subdivided and grouped around important meaning themes that frame and motivate a person's involvement with an activity. Ultimately, it is demonstrated that consumers' mental models are made up of both cognitive (beliefs) and emotional (feelings) components, and that these structures of meaning are activated by the current consumption situation. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source]

Categorization bases and their influence on product category knowledge structures

PSYCHOLOGY & MARKETING, Issue 6 2002
José Antonio Rosa
This study examines the relationship between categorization bases and the persistent use of specific categories in the motorcycle industry. Categorization bases are distinguished from one another and classified based on their distance from embodied experience. The relationship between the different classes that emerge and the number of years that specific category labels remain part of the market conversation is subsequently explored. The fundamental proposition is that categorization bases that are close to embodied experience, such as perceptible properties and affordances, will give rise to shorter-lived categories relative to categorization bases that are further removed from embodied experience, such as historical criteria and scientific authority. Market stories from published sources are content analyzed and coded, and used as sources of industry categories. Analysis reveals that four categorization bases,usage scripts, scientific authority, experiential wholes, and affordances,are associated with greater category persistence in the motorcycle market when used as the primary basis for categorization, whereas perceptible properties, metaphorical creations, and historical criteria were associated with lower-persistence categories. The results were not perfectly aligned with a strict distance-from-embodied-experience argument, and their implications for future research and theory are discussed. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source]

Marking high-technology market evolution through the foci of market stories: the case of local area networks

THE JOURNAL OF PRODUCT INNOVATION MANAGEMENT, Issue 6 2002
Vasilis Theoharakis
Previous research suggests that changing consumer and producer knowledge structures play a role in market evolution and that the sociocognitive processes of product markets are revealed in the sensemaking stories of market actors that are rebroadcasted in commercial publications. In this article, the authors lend further support to the story-based nature of market sensemaking and the use of the sociocognitive approach in explaining the evolution of high-technology markets. They examine the content (i.e., subject matter or topic) and volume (i.e., the number) of market stories and the extent to which content and volume of market stories evolve as a technology emerges. Data were obtained from a content analysis of 10,412 article abstracts, published in key trade journals, pertaining to Local Area Network (LAN) technologies and spanning the period 1981 to 2000. Hypotheses concerning the evolving nature (content and volume) of market stories in technology evolution are tested. The analysis identified four categories of market stories,technical, product availability, product adoption, and product discontinuation. The findings show that the emerging technology passes initially through a ,technical-intensive' phase whereby technology related stories dominate, through a ,supply-push' phase, in which stories presenting products embracing the technology tend to exceed technical stories while there is a rise in the number of product adoption reference stories, to a ,product-focus' phase, with stories predominantly focusing on product availability. Overall story volume declines when a technology matures as the need for sensemaking reduces. When stories about product discontinuation surface, these signal the decline of current technology. New technologies that fail to maintain the ,product-focus' stage also reflect limited market acceptance. The article also discusses the theoretical and managerial implications of the study's findings. [source]

The Relationships between Knowledge Structures and Appraisals of Economically Disadvantaged Adolescents

Does Memory Development Belong on an Endangered Topic List?

CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2000
Deanna Kuhn
Although memory has long been regarded as a central and well-defined topic within the field of cognitive development, developments in and related to the study of memory increasingly suggest that the study of memory needs to be situated in a number of broader conceptual and research contexts. Four of these contexts are identified here and the ways they accommodate memory phenomena are examined: (1) knowledge (what is remembered?); (2) comprehension (what does it mean?); (3) context/function (why remember?); and (4) strategy (how to remember?). Memories, it is suggested, are best examined as knowledge structures that are the product of efforts to understand and to know, and memorizing is a socially situated activity undertaken in the service of individual or social goals. [source]