A QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE VALUE CREATION OF URBAN LIVING LABS

Ben Robaeyst, Nell van Hansewyck (), Bastiaan Baccarne () and Dimitri Schuurman ()
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Ben Robaeyst: Department of Communication Sciences, imec-MICT-Ghent University, Technicum, T1, Sint-Pietersnieuwstraat 41, 9000 Gent, Belgium
Nell van Hansewyck: imec, Ghent, De Krook, Miriam Makebaplein 1, 9000 Gent, Belgium
Bastiaan Baccarne: Department of Industrial Systems, Engineering and Product Design, imec-MICT-Ghent University, Sint-Martens-Latemlaan 2B, 8500 Kortrijk, Belgium
Dimitri Schuurman: imec, Ghent, De Krook, Miriam Makebaplein 1, 9000 Gent, Belgium

International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), 2023, vol. 27, issue 05, 1-25

Abstract: Over the past decade, Open Innovation (OI) literature has extended its scope beyond strictly economical contexts to the context of societal value creation. This has given rise to the notion of distributed knowledge as a driver for sustainable innovation development. Over the past 15 years, the concept of Urban Living Labs (ULLs) has gained popularity to put social OI into practice. Hence, this concept is often applied in urban environments to support transition processes that try to tackle so-called wicked problems. However, a fuzzy understanding of this ULL concept still exists, due to an unclear understanding of its value creation mechanics. Therefore, this paper aims to both conceptualise and gain a better understanding of how ULLs are instrumentalised and create value. This is studied from the perspective of “ecosystem stakeholders†that participate in ULL projects. These insights are obtained through a case study with a multimethod qualitative research approach. The main data sources are a series of 20 semi-structured key-informant interviews, four focus groups, and participatory observation. The results show that the value creation for the participating stakeholders can be summarised in two main clusters: (1) the ULL as a way to build and strengthen the capacities of participating stakeholders; and (2) the ULL as a way to facilitate purpose driven fulfilment in urban transition processes.

Keywords: Social open innovation; urban living labs; urban innovation; value creation; urban transition; qualitative research; smart cities; collaborative learning (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1142/S1363919623400078

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