Trust trigger and knowledge elicitor: The role of epistemic objects in coordinating the fragmentation and heterogeneity of knowledge in digital innovation networks

• Published date: 01 October 2019
• Date: 01 October 2019
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/kpm.1613
• Author: Jiayuan Liu

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Trust trigger and knowledge elicitor: The role of epistemic

objects in coordinating the fragmentation and heterogeneity of

knowledge in digital innovation networks

Jiayuan Liu

China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing,

China

Correspondence

Jiayuan Liu, China Pharmaceutical University,

639 Longmian Avenue, Jiangning District,

Nanjing, China.

Email: m15042906336@163.com

The paper aims to explore how epistemic objects—defined as objects of investigation

that are simultaneously underdefined, unfolding objects in collaboration—orchestrate

knowledge for coordinating the knowledge fragmentation and heterogeneity in digi-

tal innovation networks. By using a mixed-methods research approach, the paper

begins with a qualitative case study to explain the relationships and follows up with

quantitative surveys to test the hypotheses. As a result, this study finds that by acting

as a trust trigger and a knowledge elicitor, epistemic objects facilitate the sharing,

acquisition, and integration of knowledge, thereby coordinating the knowledge frag-

mentation and heterogeneity among collaborative digital ventures in their innovation

networks. Hence, the study makes three contributions: (a) a focus on both affective

and cognitive trust triggered by epistemic objects provides a novel source of motiva-

tion for collaborative knowledge and innovation activities, (b) the recognition of epi-

stemic objects as a knowledge elicitor provides a new insight into identification and

coordination of knowledge heterogeneity within innovation networks, and (c) it high-

lights the independent role of epistemic objects that presents an alternative to

human control with instrumental artifacts on collaborative knowledge and

innovation work.

1|INTRODUCTION

With digital innovation increasingly pushing heterogeneous actors to

connect with each other across multiple organizational and commu-

nity boundaries, no matter (Lyytinen, Yoo, Richard, & Boland, 2015,

23) how “innocent”the original intent might be, the innovation net-

work is likely to eventually move toward the anarchic form—a dou-

bly distributed innovation network (Yoo, Henfridsson, & Lyytinen,

2010)—in which the organizational and technological control over

product components is distributed across firms of different kinds,

and where the product knowledge is distributed across heteroge-

neous communities and specialties. In such a network, the structure

and dynamics of innovation are most sophisticated, bringing with

this network its own challenge: coordinating the heterogeneity of

knowledge and countering its fragmentation (Lyytinen et al., 2015;

Yoo et al., 2010).

Facing this problem, the knowledge management literature

(Dhanaraj & Parkhe, 2006; Gold, Malhotra, & Segars, 2001;

Heikkinen & Tähtinen, 2006; Schutz, Kim, Yoo, & Pavlou, 2009) recog-

nizes that knowledge orchestration could be a useful solution. That is,

a certain amount of orchestration, influence, and direction is needed

for network actors to appropriately mobilize and coordinate knowl-

edge without sacrificing flexibility and independence in the processes

of innovation. Drawing on a network orchestration model created by

Dhanaraj and Parkhe (2006), this study identifies three activities as

the essential ingredients that constitute knowledge orchestration:

knowledge sharing (KS), that is, the ease with which knowledge is

transferred and mobilized within a network (Dhanaraj & Parkhe,

Received: 3 May 2019 Accepted: 21 August 2019

DOI: 10.1002/kpm.1613

Knowl Process Manag. 2019;26:332–345.wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/kpm© 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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