User participation depth and innovation performance of Internet companies: the moderating effect of environmental turbulence

As the external environment is changing rapidly, the traditional innovation model can no longer satisfy firms' requirements for time-based competition. Internet technology enables users to become a source of innovation, thereby engaging user participation in firms' innovation activities has become an important means for firms to improve their innovation performance. Based on resource-based theory, this study analyzes a sample of 189 Internet companies to examine the direct effect of user participation depth on firms' innovation performance, as well as the moderating effect of environmental turbulence (including market turbulence, competitive intensity, and technological turbulence) on this relationship. We find that there is a positive relationship between user participation depth and the innovation performance of Internet companies, and that market turbulence and competitive intensity positively moderates this relationship.