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Field-Level Dynamics and the Gradual Disruption of the 3D Printing Community

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Part of the book series: Contributions to Management Science ((MANAGEMENT SC.))

Abstract

This chapter discusses the insights of my empirical research in conceptual and theoretical terms. With regard to the institutional entanglements that shape the 3D printing field and the corresponding conditions for entrepreneurial action, I emphasize the interfaces between different layers of social order. Additionally, I reconsider the essential differences between the exemplary case of open source software and the empirically observed context of open source hardware. In this regard, the matter of materiality turns out to be a crucial variable in determining the means and ends for community-based innovation. Moreover, the physical transformation of commons-based knowledge into tangible open source hardware devices like 3D printers generates multiple opportunities for entrepreneurship and thus heats up the disruptive tendencies associated with the dilemma of entrepreneurship.

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Ferdinand, JP. (2018). Field-Level Dynamics and the Gradual Disruption of the 3D Printing Community. In: Entrepreneurship in Innovation Communities. Contributions to Management Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66842-0_6

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