Finally, this study focuses on innovation involvement and, in so doing, does not capture the effects of the
independent variables on other activities associated with job
or team performance (Welbourne, Johnson, and Erez, 1998),
It therefore does not provide a full picture of the role of innovation
in the context of these other activities.
This study contributes to social network theory by identifying
the tertius iungens mechanism as a fundamental pattern of
action that accounts for innovation involvement independent
of network density. The study also suggests a strong link
between social network density and innovation in some
within-firm contexts. As Law and Callon (1988: 284) suggested,
"Engineers are not just people who sit in drawing offices
and design machines, they are also, willy nilly, social
activists." The tertius iungens orientation suggests one form
this social activism might take. The model of innovation
involvement proffered—social networks, the tertius iungens
orientation, and the use of social knowledge—is suggestive
of the mechanics that lead to organizational and institutional
change as well