UNT professor awarded Fulbright to study how cultural norms impact online innovation

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A University of North Texas business professor has earned  a Fulbright U.S. Scholar grant to research how the creation of new online technologies is affected by different cultural norms – the shared system of beliefs that characterize a particular group – and whether that’s changed in today’s technology-driven environment.

The award will allow Dan J. Kim, a professor in the Department of Information Technology and Decision Sciences, to travel to the Korea University Business School, the top private university in South Korea, where he’ll begin a six-month stint teaching and researching along with other world-class scholars. He’ll start next February.

“In today’s highly competitive global economy, innovation is a subject of great importance because it stimulates sustainable business growth and improves the national economy,” said Kim. “This project examines whether the results of earlier studies on national culture and innovation are still valid.”

The project will help researchers understand, on a national level, how cultural values can affect innovation – including patents and new products or services – either online or in traditional spaces.

Kim’s Fulbright will provide a stipend for housing and other expenses.

The Fulbright Scholar Program was established in 1946 by Senator J. William Fulbright to increase the mutual understanding between the people of the U.S. and the people of other countries through international educational exchange programs. The Fulbright Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.