Authors: Meera Sarma; Thomas Matheus
This study investigates how interaction mechanisms at multiple levels of analysis and their cross-level effects influence knowledge integration within innovation projects in complex products and systems industry buyer-supplier dyads. Emphasizing a knowledge-as-possession perspective, we collected data from two case study original equipment manufacturers and two associated suppliers and analysed these utilizing template analysis and cross-case analysis. Our results show how different interaction mechanisms, forming part of structural, processual and behavioural types of interaction mechanisms and their cross-level effects, influence knowledge integration. The theoretical framework proposed adds to the existing evidence base in that different theoretical phenomena – that were unrelated or hardly related to knowledge integration – were identified to have generative influences on knowledge integration at various levels. Our suggested permeation of the structural and processual interaction mechanisms by the behavioural interaction mechanisms offers a base for conceptual integration between interaction mechanisms and knowledge integration across different analysis levels, increasing the scope of analysis of interaction mechanisms and their impact on knowledge integration.
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