Abstract
The smart specialization approach has guided regional innovation policies in Europe for roughly a decade. However, the policy practice under the approach has met considerable criticism which suggests the existence of significant gaps between the conceptual level and the level of policy implementation. To explain and understand the reasons for these gaps, this article proposes an institutionalist perspective rooted in neo-institutional sociology. In particular, the article draws on concepts such as ceremony, myth, and isomorphism and argues that such an institutionalist perspective can provide one of several fields of further research on the political economy of regional innovation policy. Pursuing such research is particularly relevant to inform policymaking in the coming years, given the current tendency to re-orient smart specialization towards challenge orientation, directionality, normativity, and sustainability.
Original language | English |
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Article number | scac035 |
Pages (from-to) | 878-889 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Science and Public Policy |
Volume | 49 |
Issue number | 6 |
Early online date | 29 Jun 2022 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Dec 2022 |
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
- 502014 Innovation research
- 507026 Economic geography
Keywords
- regional innovation policy
- institutionalism
- isomorphism
- smart specialization
- EU cohesion policy
- CHOICE
- ISOMORPHISM
- 6 CRITICAL QUESTIONS
- ORGANIZATIONS
- FRAMEWORK
- SYSTEMS