Ferguson, D. M., & Cawthorne, J. E., & Ahn, B., & Ohland, M. W. (2012, June), Engineering Innovativeness  Paper presented at 2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, San Antonio, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--21309

\bibitem{asee_peer_21309}
  Ferguson, D. M., \& Cawthorne, J. E., \& Ahn, B., \& Ohland, M. W. (2012, June), \emph{Engineering Innovativeness}
  Paper presented at 2012 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, San Antonio, Texas.
  10.18260/1-2--21309

Daniel Michael Ferguson, James Edwin Cawthorne Jr., Benjamin Ahn, and Matthew W. Ohland.  "Engineering Innovativeness".  2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, San Antonio, Texas, 2012, June.  ASEE Conferences, 2012.  https://peer.asee.org/21309 Internet.  17 Apr, 2024

\bibitem{asee_peer_21309}
  Daniel Michael Ferguson, James Edwin Cawthorne Jr., Benjamin Ahn, and Matthew W. Ohland.
  "Engineering Innovativeness".
  \emph{2012 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, San Antonio, Texas, 2012, June}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2012.
  https://peer.asee.org/21309 Internet.  17 Apr, 2024

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_21309
author = "Daniel Michael Ferguson, James Edwin Cawthorne Jr., Benjamin Ahn, and Matthew W. Ohland"
title = "Engineering Innovativeness"
booktitle = "2012 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition"
year = "2012"
month = "June"
address = "San Antonio, Texas"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/21309}
number = {10.18260/1-2--21309}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  -                                         Abstract: ASEE 2012            "The first step in winning the future is encouraging American innovation.”                    President Barack Obama, January 25, 2011 (Obama, 2011)        An innovation is the “implementation of a new or significantly improved product (goodor service), process, marketing method, or organizational method in business practices,workplace organization or external relations” (Ferrari, Cachia, & Punie, 2009). Acting asinnovators and as the translators of new or existing technology into innovations that benefitsociety is the torch that engineers are expected to carry. Multiple vague and overlappingdefinitions of innovative behavior by engineers lead to much confusion in our society over therole that engineers play or can play in the stages of the innovation process. In this paper andaccompanying research we explore the innovative behavior of engineers and the relationship ofthat innovative behavior with the creative, design, problem solving and entrepreneurial behaviorof engineers during the three principal stages of innovation (Ford, Kousky, & Spiwak, 2007).Different perspectives of defining the innovative behavior of engineers illustrate the societalconfusion over the definition of innovative behavior by engineers. The key question that we areexploring is: “What set of intrinsic abilities (skills, knowledge, personality traits, or attributes),when combined with domain knowledge, experience and other extrinsic factors, enable andinspire engineers to create innovations that benefit society?”(Ferguson & Ohland, 2011)        This paper discusses a qualitative research study set in an interpretivist framework whichexplores innovative behavior in engineers. The data is drawn from a set of 8 interviews ofengineering innovators and entrepreneurs each with 30-40 years of industry, academic andinnovation experience conducted in the summer of 2011. This study employs a grounded theoryapproach to produce a description of engineering innovativeness, an ill defined social construct.This paper and analysis builds on a previous analysis and development paper which focused onthe relationship of the innovative and entrepreneurial behavior of engineers. The initialinterviews were also expanded with supplementary questions for this analysis to include a focuson the three stages of the process of innovation, inhibitors to innovation and pathways tobecoming innovative or more innovative.   “the science and engineering research enterprise… these are disciplines that lead to  innovation across the spectrum of modern life”(National Academy of Engineering &                               Medecine, 2007) Pp90-91.        The ultimate purpose of this exploratory study is to inform a process to develop or adapta measurement instrument so that innovative engineering behavior or potential can bebenchmarked in student and professional engineers. A benchmark of engineer innovativenesswill enable tests of interventions or the identification of intrinsic or extrinsic factors that increaseinnovativeness attributes or skill sets in engineers, thereby potentially benefiting society. Ifengineers become more innovative as a result of changes in engineering behavior or theenvironments in which they learn, work and live, society stands to benefit from their innovations.Ferguson, D. M., & Ohland, M. (2011). What is Engineering Innovativeness? International        Journal of Engineering Education, in press.Ferrari, A., Cachia, R., & Punie, Y. (2009). Innovation and Creativity in Education and Training        in the EU Member States: Fostering Creative Learning and Supporting Innovative        Teaching. European Commission Joint Research Centre.Ford, G. S., Kousky, T. M., & Spiwak, L. J. (2007). A Valley of Death in the Innovation        Sequence: an Economic Investigation. Washington D.C.: The Phoenix Center for        Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies.National Academy of Engineering, & Medecine, I. o. (2007). Rising Above The Gathering        Storm: Energizing and Employing America for A Brighter Economic Future.        Washington, D.C.: National Academy of Sciences.Obama, B. (2011, January 25). [State of the Union Address to the U.S. Congress].
AU  - Daniel Michael Ferguson
AU  - James Edwin Cawthorne Jr.
AU  - Benjamin Ahn
AU  - Matthew W. Ohland
CY  - San Antonio, Texas
DA  - 2012/06/10
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Engineering Innovativeness
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/21309
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--21309
ER  -