Supporting Open Innovation Behaviors in Researchers: Developing a Training with Acceptance and Commitment Training
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.23726/cij.2025.1680Keywords:
Perspective-taking, Not Invented Here, Not Shared Here, Open Innovation in Science, ACTAbstract
This study explores the use of Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT) to overcome individual-level barriers to open innovation in academic and research environments. Rooted in the management literature on Not Invented Here and Not Shared Here biases, the research examines how rigid professional identities obstruct knowledge exchange and interdisciplinary collaboration. Although perspective-taking has been identified as a promising method for mitigating these biases, actionable interventions remain scarce, particularly in scientific contexts. To address this gap, we developed and iteratively refined a two-day training intervention using an Action Research Innovation Management Framework. The intervention integrates ACT principles to enhance perspective-taking and promote open innovation behaviors among researchers. Findings demonstrate that ACT is effective in reducing cognitive biases related to knowledge flows. The results also highlight the critical role of perspective-taking in facilitating the adoption of open innovation practices within academic settings. The study provides practical implications for university administrators and Knowledge Transfer Offices, emphasizing the need to address psychological barriers alongside structural incentives to enable more effective implementation of open innovation initiatives.
References
Ajzen, I., 2001. Nature and Operation of Attitudes. Annu. Rev. Psychol. 52, 27–58. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.27
Antons, D., Piller, F.T., 2015. Opening the Black Box of “Not Invented Here”: Attitudes, Decision Biases, and Behavioral Consequences. Acad. Manag. Perspect. 29, 193–217. https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.2013.0091
Beck, S., Bergenholtz, C., Bogers, M., Brasseur, T.-M., Conradsen, M.L., Di Marco, D., Distel, A.P., Dobusch, L., Dörler, D., Effert, A., Fecher, B., Filiou, D., Frederiksen, L., Gillier, T., Grimpe, C., Gruber, M., Haeussler, C., Heigl, F., Hoisl, K., Hyslop, K., Kokshagina, O., LaFlamme, M., Lawson, C., Lifshitz-Assaf, H., Lukas, W., Nordberg, M., Norn, M.T., Poetz, M., Ponti, M., Pruschak, G., Pujol Priego, L., Radziwon, A., Rafner, J., Romanova, G., Ruser, A., Sauermann, H., Shah, S.K., Sherson, J.F., Suess-Reyes, J., Tucci, C.L., Tuertscher, P., Vedel, J.B., Velden, T., Verganti, R., Wareham, J., Wiggins, A., Xu, S.M., 2022. The Open Innovation in Science research field: a collaborative conceptualisation approach. Ind. Innov. 29, 136–185. https://doi.org/10.1080/13662716.2020.1792274
Bertello, A., De Bernardi, P., Forliano, C., Ricciardi, F., 2022. How Do Individuals Engage in Open Innovation? Unveiling the Microfoundations of Relational Capabilities, in: Cuel, R., Ponte, D., Virili, F. (Eds.), Exploring Digital Resilience, Lecture Notes in Information Systems and Organisation. Springer International Publishing, Cham, pp. 19–28. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-10902-7_2
Burcharth, A.L. de A., Knudsen, M.P., Søndergaard, H.A., 2014. Neither invented nor shared here: The impact and management of attitudes for the adoption of open innovation practices. Technovation 34, 149–161. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2013.11.007
Coleman, J.S., 1990. Foundations of Social Theory. Harvard University Press.
Flinchbaugh, C., Li, P., Luth, M.T., Chadwick, C., 2016. Team-level high involvement work practices: investigating the role of knowledge sharing and perspective taking. Hum. Resour. Manag. J. 26, 134–150. https://doi.org/10.1111/1748-8583.12098
Galinsky, A.D., Ku, G., 2004. The Effects of Perspective-Taking on Prejudice: The Moderating Role of Self-Evaluation. Pers. Soc. Psychol. Bull. 30, 594–604. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167203262802
Godbee, M., Kangas, M., 2020. The Relationship Between Flexible Perspective Taking and Emotional Well-Being: A Systematic Review of the “Self-as-Context” Component of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Behav. Ther. 51, 917–932. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2019.12.010
Guertler, M.R., Kriz, A., Sick, N., 2020. Encouraging and enabling action research in innovation management. RD Manag. 50, 380–395. https://doi.org/10.1111/radm.12413
Gutmann, T., Chochoiek, C., Chesbrough, H., 2023. Extending Open Innovation – How to Orchestrate Your Knowledge Flows. Calif. Manag. Rev. Insights.
Hannen, J., Antons, D., Piller, F., Salge, T.O., Coltman, T., Devinney, T.M., 2019. Containing the Not-Invented-Here Syndrome in external knowledge absorption and open innovation: The role of indirect countermeasures. Res. Policy 48, 103822. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2019.103822
Hayes, S.C., Strosahl, K.D., Wilson, K.G., 1999. Acceptance and commitment therapy: An experiential approach to behavior change, Acceptance and commitment therapy: An experiential approach to behavior change. Guilford Press, New York, NY, US.
Katz, R., Allen, T.J., 1982. Investigating the Not Invented Here (NIH) syndrome: A look at the performance, tenure, and communication patterns of 50 R & D Project Groups. RD Manag. 12, 7–20. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9310.1982.tb00478.x
Lifshitz-Assaf, H., 2018. Dismantling Knowledge Boundaries at NASA: The Critical Role of Professional Identity in Open Innovation. Adm. Sci. Q. 63, 746–782. https://doi.org/10.1177/0001839217747876
Menon, T., Thompson, L., Choi, H.-S., 2006. Tainted Knowledge vs. Tempting Knowledge: People Avoid Knowledge from Internal Rivals and Seek Knowledge from External Rivals. Manag. Sci. 52, 1129–1144. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.1060.0525
Moran, D.J., 2015. Acceptance and Commitment Training in the workplace. Curr. Opin. Psychol., Third wave behavioral therapies 2, 26–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2014.12.031
Parker, S.K., Atkins, P.W.B., Axtell, C.M., 2008. Building Better Workplaces through Individual Perspective Taking: A Fresh Look at a Fundamental Human Process, in: International Review of Industrial and Organizational Psychology 2008. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, pp. 149–196. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470773277.ch5
Parker, S.K., Axtell, C.M., 2001. Seeing another viewpoint: Antecedents and outcomes of employee perspective taking. Acad. Manage. J. 44, 1085–1100. https://doi.org/10.2307/3069390
Soll, J.B., Milkman, K.L., Payne, J.W., 2015. A User’s Guide to Debiasing, in: The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of Judgment and Decision Making. John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, pp. 924–951. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118468333.ch33
Somekh, B., 2005. Action Research. McGraw-Hill Education (UK).
Tarrant, M., Calitri, R., Weston, D., 2012. Social Identification Structures the Effects of Perspective Taking. Psychol. Sci. 23, 973–978. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797612441221
Todd, A.R., Bodenhausen, G.V., Galinsky, A.D., 2012. Perspective taking combats the denial of intergroup discrimination. J. Exp. Soc. Psychol. 48, 738–745. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2011.12.011
Urdari, C., Farcas, T.V., Tiron-Tudor, A., 2017. Assessing the legitimacy of HEIs’ contributions to society: The perspective of international rankings. Sustain. Account. Manag. Policy J. 8, 191–215. https://doi.org/10.1108/SAMPJ-12-2015-0108
Vorauer, J.D., Martens, V., Sasaki, S.J., 2009. When trying to understand detracts from trying to behave: Effects of perspective taking in intergroup interaction. J. Pers. Soc. Psychol. 96, 811–827. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013411
Weissenberger-Eibl, M.A., Hampel, T., 2021. What do we have in-common? overcoming the not-invented-here syndrome through recategorisation. Int. J. Innov. Manag. 25, 2150070. https://doi.org/10.1142/S1363919621500705
Williams, P., 2002. The Competent Boundary Spanner. Public Adm. 80, 103–124. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9299.00296
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Categories
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Clio Dosi, Ettore Gorni, Matteo Vignoli, Silvia Cau, Giovambattista Presti
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
