Innovation: Exploring the knowledge base

Jan Fagerberg, Morten Fosaas and Koson Sapprasert ()

Research Policy, 2012, vol. 41, issue 7, 1132-1153

Abstract: New types of knowledge, and new ways of organising the production of it, may emerge as knowledge producers respond to the challenges posed by a changing society. This paper focuses on the core knowledge of one such emerging field, namely, innovation studies. To explore the knowledge base of the field, a database of references in scholarly surveys of various aspects of innovation, published in “handbooks”, is assembled and a new methodology for analysing the knowledge base of a field with the help of such data is developed. The paper identifies the core contributions to the literature in this area, the most central scholars and important research environments, and analyses – with the help of citations in scholarly journals – how the core literature is used by researchers in different scientific disciplines and cross-disciplinary fields. Based on this information a cluster analysis is used to draw inferences about the structure of the knowledge base on innovation. Finally, the changing character of the field over time is analysed, and possible challenges for its continuing development are discussed.

Keywords: Innovation studies; New scientific fields; Specialisms; Bibliometrics; Handbooks (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (108)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Innovation: Exploring the knowledge base (2011)
Working Paper: Innovation: Exploring the knowledge base (2010)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:respol:v:41:y:2012:i:7:p:1132-1153

DOI: 10.1016/j.respol.2012.03.008

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