Social Origins of Good Ideas
By leelefever on August 17, 2004 - 6:31pm.
The idea from this paper by Ronald Burt is that people who participate in a number of groups or networks are exposed to a wide variety of perspectives and ways of thinking.
By virtue of this exposure, these same people are able see holes across groups and find new ways (new ideas) to bridge the holes. This often results in innovation.
I've only read about 1/2 the 58 page .pdf, but I highly recommend it.
Clay at Many-to-Many has a little more on it:Many-to-Many: Social Origin of Good Ideas
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Social Origins of Good Ideas
Thanks for highlighting this paper as I had not heard of it and will enjoy reading it! It is interesting how the familiar and unfamiliar (and their connections) dance together to facilitate innovation. It is as if the number and varierty of our experiences insulate us from hard wiring "already" responses that shut out innovation.
The application of these concepts within our corporations will separate the great from the good. I think every senior leader and management development professional should read this paper.
Lisa Haneberg
Even though I hate reading
Even though I hate reading multi-page papaers and articles I enjoyed reading this one and found some interesting thoughts in it. Thanks for sharing!
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