TY - BOOK
T1 - An Exploration of the Influence of Regional Level Institutional Frameworks in the Evolution of an Inter-regional Innovation System
AU - Lalrindiki, Mandy
N1 - This was for the final master project
This is a placeholder note
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - Collaboration across borders is often confined to a limited number of issues and it
differs greatly in size, competences, finance and commitment (Klatt and Herrmann,
2011). While cross-border areas are believed to bring together firms, people and
knowledge generation institutions that are in geographic proximity, albeit with an
international border in between (OECD, 2013), Van den Broek and Smulders (2014)
stated that the nation state border itself can act as a barrier to cross-border learning by
hindering interaction between actors on both sides of the border. These barriers can also
be expected at inter-regional collaboration, especially in the absence of geographical
proximity. While the systematic interaction between knowledge producer and
knowledge exploitation sub-systems in regional innovation systems stresses the
advantage of geographical proximity, the perception of spatial proximity as a
competitive advantage raises the question of the possibility of creating an inter-regional
innovation system (iRIS) with non-contiguous regions. To address this question, this
research studies collaboration among 15 triple helix institutions from four European
regions with non-contiguous borders. It explores how inter-regional innovation systems
are developed and establishes how institutions in regional institutional frameworks
interact with each other at inter-regional level.
The research employed a multiphase mixed methods research design which entailed
desk research (analysis of the four regions), a three time-point longitudinal survey
(n=83), interviews with the collaborative group (CG) (n=17), and a detailed review of
573 emails. The findings indicate that the inter-regional CG was working from the
beginning and continued to collaborate effectively, despite their differences, throughout
the collaborative process.
The major contributions of this research are: (i) while literature suggests that
geographical proximity is advantageous for research and innovation activities, the
findings of this research suggest that the inter-regional CG established an interaction
and collaboration that works effectively over a distance and across non-contiguous
borders; (ii) the research identified the three non-spatial forms of proximity (social,
cognitive and organisational) that are key determinants for developing a successful
iRIS. Thereby, the research suggests that the substitution mechanism of geographical
proximity is not with only one non-spatial form of proximity but with all three nonspatial forms of proximities. Another major contribution of this research is the
uniqueness of the study’s method, especially the longitudinal aspect, employed to
determine changes in perceptions of CG members over time. And finally, as well as
providing a deeper awareness of the institutional gaps, which did not hinder the
collaboration process for non-contiguous regions and institutions, this study presents a
novel and unique framework for inter-regional innovation collaboration, which can be
applied to regions and institutions that want to collaborate from a distance and across
non-contiguous borders.
AB - Collaboration across borders is often confined to a limited number of issues and it
differs greatly in size, competences, finance and commitment (Klatt and Herrmann,
2011). While cross-border areas are believed to bring together firms, people and
knowledge generation institutions that are in geographic proximity, albeit with an
international border in between (OECD, 2013), Van den Broek and Smulders (2014)
stated that the nation state border itself can act as a barrier to cross-border learning by
hindering interaction between actors on both sides of the border. These barriers can also
be expected at inter-regional collaboration, especially in the absence of geographical
proximity. While the systematic interaction between knowledge producer and
knowledge exploitation sub-systems in regional innovation systems stresses the
advantage of geographical proximity, the perception of spatial proximity as a
competitive advantage raises the question of the possibility of creating an inter-regional
innovation system (iRIS) with non-contiguous regions. To address this question, this
research studies collaboration among 15 triple helix institutions from four European
regions with non-contiguous borders. It explores how inter-regional innovation systems
are developed and establishes how institutions in regional institutional frameworks
interact with each other at inter-regional level.
The research employed a multiphase mixed methods research design which entailed
desk research (analysis of the four regions), a three time-point longitudinal survey
(n=83), interviews with the collaborative group (CG) (n=17), and a detailed review of
573 emails. The findings indicate that the inter-regional CG was working from the
beginning and continued to collaborate effectively, despite their differences, throughout
the collaborative process.
The major contributions of this research are: (i) while literature suggests that
geographical proximity is advantageous for research and innovation activities, the
findings of this research suggest that the inter-regional CG established an interaction
and collaboration that works effectively over a distance and across non-contiguous
borders; (ii) the research identified the three non-spatial forms of proximity (social,
cognitive and organisational) that are key determinants for developing a successful
iRIS. Thereby, the research suggests that the substitution mechanism of geographical
proximity is not with only one non-spatial form of proximity but with all three nonspatial forms of proximities. Another major contribution of this research is the
uniqueness of the study’s method, especially the longitudinal aspect, employed to
determine changes in perceptions of CG members over time. And finally, as well as
providing a deeper awareness of the institutional gaps, which did not hinder the
collaboration process for non-contiguous regions and institutions, this study presents a
novel and unique framework for inter-regional innovation collaboration, which can be
applied to regions and institutions that want to collaborate from a distance and across
non-contiguous borders.
KW - Inter-regional innovation systems
M3 - Doctoral Thesis
ER -