IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/proeco/v146y2013i2p728-737.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Unpacking the relationships between learning mechanisms, culture types, and plant performance

Author

Listed:
  • Su, Hung-Chung
  • Chen, Yi-Su

Abstract

This study examines relationships between two learning mechanisms—conceptual learning and operational learning—and plant performance. It examines the individual and mediation effects of these two learning mechanisms on plant performance. It also examines the effects of individualism/collectivism cultural dimension on learning mechanisms. Based on a survey sample of 162 manufacturing plants, results of this study provide empirical evidence for the positive individual effects of operational learning and conceptual learning on plant performance. Further, operational learning mediates the effect of conceptual learning on plant performance. More interestingly, this study found that the indirect effect of conceptual learning is stronger under a collectivism culture than individualism culture. We conclude this study by discussing theoretical and managerial implications pertaining to the effects of learning mechanisms and cultural context on plant performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Su, Hung-Chung & Chen, Yi-Su, 2013. "Unpacking the relationships between learning mechanisms, culture types, and plant performance," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 146(2), pages 728-737.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:proeco:v:146:y:2013:i:2:p:728-737
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpe.2013.08.029
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925527313003873
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ijpe.2013.08.029?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hafeez, Khalid & Zhang, YanBing & Malak, Naila, 2002. "Determining key capabilities of a firm using analytic hierarchy process," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(1), pages 39-51, March.
    2. Charles J. Corbett & María J. Montes-Sancho & David A. Kirsch, 2005. "The Financial Impact of ISO 9000 Certification in the United States: An Empirical Analysis," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 51(7), pages 1046-1059, July.
    3. Černe, Matej & Jaklič, Marko & Škerlavaj, Miha, 2013. "Decoupling management and technological innovations: Resolving the individualism–collectivism controversy," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 19(2), pages 103-117.
    4. Gary P. Pisano, 1994. "Knowledge, Integration, and the Locus of Learning: An Empirical Analysis of Process Development," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(S1), pages 85-100, December.
    5. Michael A. Lapré & Amit Shankar Mukherjee & Luk N. Van Wassenhove, 2000. "Behind the Learning Curve: Linking Learning Activities to Waste Reduction," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 46(5), pages 597-611, May.
    6. Kathleen M. Eisenhardt & Jeffrey A. Martin, 2000. "Dynamic capabilities: what are they?," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(10‐11), pages 1105-1121, October.
    7. Levinthal, Daniel & March, James G., 1981. "A model of adaptive organizational search," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 2(4), pages 307-333, December.
    8. Roth, Aleda V. & Miller, Jeffrey G., 1992. "Success factors in manufacturing," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 35(4), pages 73-81.
    9. Ramamoorthy, Nagarajan & Kulkarni, Subodh P. & Gupta, Amit & Flood, Patrick C., 2007. "Individualism-collectivism orientation and employee attitudes: A comparison of employees from the high-technology sector in India and Ireland," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 13(2), pages 187-203, June.
    10. Gautam Ray & Jay B. Barney & Waleed A. Muhanna, 2004. "Capabilities, business processes, and competitive advantage: choosing the dependent variable in empirical tests of the resource‐based view," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(1), pages 23-37, January.
    11. James G. March, 1991. "Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 2(1), pages 71-87, February.
    12. Thomas C. Powell, 1995. "Total quality management as competitive advantage: A review and empirical study," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(1), pages 15-37.
    13. Lee Cronbach, 1951. "Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests," Psychometrika, Springer;The Psychometric Society, vol. 16(3), pages 297-334, September.
    14. Ikujiro Nonaka, 1994. "A Dynamic Theory of Organizational Knowledge Creation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 5(1), pages 14-37, February.
    15. Skerlavaj, Miha & Stemberger, Mojca Indihar & Skrinjar, Rok & Dimovski, Vlado, 2007. "Organizational learning culture--the missing link between business process change and organizational performance," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(2), pages 346-367, April.
    16. P. George Benson & Jayant V. Saraph & Roger G. Schroeder, 1991. "The Effects of Organizational Context on Quality Management: An Empirical Investigation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 37(9), pages 1107-1124, September.
    17. David J. Teece, 2007. "Explicating dynamic capabilities: the nature and microfoundations of (sustainable) enterprise performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(13), pages 1319-1350, December.
    18. Daniel A. Levinthal & James G. March, 1993. "The myopia of learning," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 14(S2), pages 95-112, December.
    19. Zu, Xingxing & Robbins, Tina L. & Fredendall, Lawrence D., 2010. "Mapping the critical links between organizational culture and TQM/Six Sigma practices," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(1), pages 86-106, January.
    20. George P. Huber, 1991. "Organizational Learning: The Contributing Processes and the Literatures," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 2(1), pages 88-115, February.
    21. Maurizio Zollo & Sidney G. Winter, 2002. "Deliberate Learning and the Evolution of Dynamic Capabilities," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(3), pages 339-351, June.
    22. David J. Teece & Gary Pisano & Amy Shuen, 1997. "Dynamic capabilities and strategic management," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(7), pages 509-533, August.
    23. Paul M. Swamidass & William T. Newell, 1987. "Manufacturing Strategy, Environmental Uncertainty and Performance: A Path Analytic Model," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 33(4), pages 509-524, April.
    24. Steven C. Wheel Wright, 1984. "Manufacturing strategy: Defining the missing link," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 5(1), pages 77-91, January.
    25. John E. Ettlie, 1995. "Product-Process Development Integration in Manufacturing," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 41(7), pages 1224-1237, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Aisling Bonner & George Onofrei & Paul Humphreys & Michael Margey & Trevor Cadden, 2021. "Entrepreneurial versus cooperative social capital: The impact on operational performance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(8), pages 3854-3865, December.
    2. Yuan, Yang & Feng, Bo & Lai, Fujun & Collins, Brian J., 2018. "The role of trust, commitment, and learning orientation on logistic service effectiveness," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 93(C), pages 37-50.
    3. Chen, Yi-Su & Su, Hung-Chung & Ro, Young K., 2017. "The co-evolution of supplier relationship quality and product quality in the U.S. auto industry: A cultural perspective," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 184(C), pages 245-255.
    4. Qaisar Iqbal & Shaohua Yang & Rashid Nawaz & Yifeng Lin, 2019. "Infollution (Information Pollution) Management, Filtering Strategy, Scalable Workforce, and Organizational Learning: A Conceptual Study," Information Management and Business Review, AMH International, vol. 10(4), pages 1-7.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Adrian S. Choo & Kevin W. Linderman & Roger G. Schroeder, 2007. "Method and Psychological Effects on Learning Behaviors and Knowledge Creation in Quality Improvement Projects," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 53(3), pages 437-450, March.
    2. Jorge Ferreira & Sofia Cardim & Arnaldo Coelho, 2021. "Dynamic Capabilities and Mediating Effects of Innovation on the Competitive Advantage and Firm’s Performance: the Moderating Role of Organizational Learning Capability," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 12(2), pages 620-644, June.
    3. Yuan, Chun & Xue, Doudou & He, Xin, 2021. "A balancing strategy for ambidextrous learning, dynamic capabilities, and business model design, the opposite moderating effects of environmental dynamism," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    4. Ng, Stephen C.H. & Rungtusanatham, Johnny M. & Zhao, Xiande & Lee, T.S., 2015. "Examining process management via the lens of exploitation and exploration: Reconceptualization and scale development," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 163(C), pages 1-15.
    5. Linda Argote & Ella Miron-Spektor, 2011. "Organizational Learning: From Experience to Knowledge," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(5), pages 1123-1137, October.
    6. Giovanni Gavetti, 2012. "PERSPECTIVE—Toward a Behavioral Theory of Strategy," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 23(1), pages 267-285, February.
    7. Adrián Kovács & Bart Looy & Bruno Cassiman, 2015. "Exploring the scope of open innovation: a bibliometric review of a decade of research," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 104(3), pages 951-983, September.
    8. Ahsan, Mujtaba & Fernhaber, Stephanie A., 2019. "Multinational Enterprises: Leveraging a Corporate International Entrepreneurship Lens for New Insights Into Subsidiary Initiatives," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 51-65.
    9. Philipp Nitzsche & Bernd W. Wirtz & Vincent Göttel, 2016. "Innovation Success In The Context Of Inbound Open Innovation," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 20(02), pages 1-38, February.
    10. Michailova, Snejina & Zhan, Wu, 2015. "Dynamic capabilities and innovation in MNC subsidiaries," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 50(3), pages 576-583.
    11. Liu, Ting & Li, Xizhuo, 2022. "How Do MNCs Conduct Local Technological Innovation in a Host Country? An Examination From Subsidiaries' Perspective," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 28(3).
    12. Yi Liu & Longwei Wang & Changhong Yuan & Yuan Li, 2012. "Information communication, organizational capability and new product development: an empirical study of Chinese firms," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 37(4), pages 416-432, August.
    13. Daniel A. Levinthal & Alessandro Marino, 2015. "Three Facets of Organizational Adaptation: Selection, Variety, and Plasticity," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 26(3), pages 743-755, June.
    14. Zhou, H. & Uhlaner, L.M., 2009. "Knowledge Management as a Strategic Tool to Foster Innovativeness of SMEs," ERIM Report Series Research in Management ERS-2009-025-ORG, Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM), ERIM is the joint research institute of the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University and the Erasmus School of Economics (ESE) at Erasmus University Rotterdam.
    15. Maurizio Zollo & Sidney G. Winter, 2002. "Deliberate Learning and the Evolution of Dynamic Capabilities," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(3), pages 339-351, June.
    16. Justin Tan & Yong Zeng, 2009. "A stage-dependent model of resource utilization, strategic flexibility, and implications for performance over time: Empirical evidence from a transitional environment," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 26(3), pages 563-588, September.
    17. Wu Zhan & Roger (Rongxin) Chen, 2013. "Dynamic capability and IJV performance: The effect of exploitation and exploration capabilities," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 30(2), pages 601-632, June.
    18. Dennys Eduardo Rossetto & Roberto Carlos Bernardes & Felipe Mendes Borini & Cristiane Chaves Gattaz, 2018. "Structure and evolution of innovation research in the last 60 years: review and future trends in the field of business through the citations and co-citations analysis," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 115(3), pages 1329-1363, June.
    19. Wu, Lei-Yu, 2010. "Applicability of the resource-based and dynamic-capability views under environmental volatility," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 63(1), pages 27-31, January.
    20. Forés, Beatriz & Camisón, César, 2016. "Does incremental and radical innovation performance depend on different types of knowledge accumulation capabilities and organizational size?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(2), pages 831-848.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:proeco:v:146:y:2013:i:2:p:728-737. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ijpe .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.