Recombinant search and breakthrough idea generation: An analysis of high impact papers in the social sciences

Melissa A. Schilling and Elad Green

Research Policy, 2011, vol. 40, issue 10, 1321-1331

Abstract: Some ideas have dramatically more impact than others – they may overturn existing paradigms or launch new areas of scientific inquiry. Where do such high impact ideas come from? Are some search processes significantly more likely to lead to breakthrough idea generation than others? In this research, we compare “high impact” papers from the social sciences with random-but-matched articles published in the same journals in the same years. We find that search scope, search depth, and atypical connections between different research domains significantly increase a paper's impact, even when controlling for the experience and prior publishing success of the author(s).

Keywords: Innovation; Knowledge networks; Breakthrough; Recombinant search; Small-world networks; Insight (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (91)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:respol:v:40:y:2011:i:10:p:1321-1331

DOI: 10.1016/j.respol.2011.06.009

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