CEO Construal Level, Cognitive Flexibility, and Firm Ambidexterity
研究了CEO的抽象思维水平（解释水平）和认知灵活性如何影响企业同时进行探索和开发的双元能力，基于344家韩国中小企业的两轮调查数据发现，高解释水平通过增强认知灵活性促进双元能力，且企业规模会调节这一效应。
We examine how two cognitive characteristics of chief executive officers (CEOs)—their construal level and cognitive flexibility—influence a firm’s ambidexterity (i.e., the firm’s ability to pursue exploration and exploitation simultaneously). Drawing on construal level theory, we argue that CEOs who think at more abstract levels are better able to adapt to the changing conditions of exploration and exploitation flexibly, and are thus more effective at achieving ambidexterity. We examined these proposed hypotheses in a sample of 344 Korean small- and medium-sized enterprises, using surveys of matched CEOs and executives at two points in time with a one-year lag. We find that higher CEO construal levels are associated with greater CEO cognitive flexibility, which in turn positively influence firm ambidexterity. Additionally, findings from a post hoc analysis indicate that the effects of CEO construal levels and cognitive flexibility differ depending on the firm’s size. This study provides new insights on managerial cognition and the microfoundations of ambidexterity.