Shaping Social Innovation by Social Research

Jürgen Howaldt () and Ralf Kopp
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Jürgen Howaldt: Dortmund University of Technology
Ralf Kopp: Dortmund University of Technology

A chapter in Challenge Social Innovation, 2012, pp 43-55 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract In light of the increasing importance of social innovation, this paper explores the question of what (new) roles social sciences can play in analyzing and shaping social innovation. The paper starts with an overview of the current situation and the perspectives of socio-scientific innovation research that have greatly contributed to the development and spread of an enlightened socio-scientific understanding of innovation. Against the backdrop of clear paradoxes and confusion in prevailing politics of innovation, the contours of a new innovation paradigm are becoming visible and causing social innovation to grow in importance. Consistently, the social sciences will be challenged to redefine their functions with regard to innovation. In the past, innovation research in the context of social sciences has contributed heavily to explain the social dimensions, the complexity and paradoxa of innovation processes. Henceforth, much will depend on realigning the range of competencies of social science and social scientists by contributing actively to the development and integration of innovations as well as by developing social innovation.

Keywords: Social Science; Innovation System; Innovation Process; Social Practice; Innovation Policy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:sprchp:978-3-642-32879-4_3

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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-32879-4_3

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