Knowledge management and organisational performance: social capital and the RAE in the UK Higher Education Institution

Abstract

In this research, we explore the relationship between social capital and the R&D performance in higher education. It was argued that social capital is a necessary enabler of effective innovation processes. This has policy implications as it suggests a more collaborative and devolved engagement between governments and their research efforts. The fundamental significance of social capital for innovation, and thus for science and technology policy, while noted by observers at the forefront of thinking in this area, has yet to be assimilated by policymakers and captured in the design of policy tools (Coleman, 1990). So far, almost no explicit attention has been directed toward the effect of social capital on innovation (Fountain, 1997).