Knowledge, innovation and emulation in the evolutionary thought of Bernard Mandeville

Of the early modern writers on the division of labour, Bernard Mandeville alone extended it to all aspects of human activity and emphasised its role in a cumulative process of evolution in which each generation modified and built on what had been achieved by earlier generations. This required exploration of the mechanisms through which new knowledge was developed as well as the means by which knowledge was transmitted between the generations. The present article examines Mandeville’s treatment of these mechanisms and explores their theoretical origins. It examines Mandeville’s understanding of the role of the division of labour in facilitating discovery and learning and the role of education and imitation in transmitting social knowledge. It shows that, for Mandeville, innovators were people of ordinary capacity who were alert to the opportunities and challenges of their environment. As a result of specialisation, they possessed tacit knowledge which was actualised in what they did rather than in theoretical propositions. Mandeville’s evolutionary thought influenced subsequent writers on political economy and evolutionary social thinkers. It may also have had some influence on Charles Darwin, though it is not, in itself, Darwinian. © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Cambridge Political Economy Society. All rights reserved.

Development of small and medium-sized enterprise horizontal innovation networks: UK agri-food sector study

Within the management literature, there is an emergent discourse on horizontal collaboration among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), whereby individual rivalries are overcome by the need for more resources and innovation, leading to increased competitiveness through joint product development. In particular, a number of these horizontal collaborations between SMEs have occurred within the agri-food sector. As a consequence, this article aims to explore the longitudinal development of horizontal innovation networks within an artisan bakers’ network as part of the UK SME agri-food sector. An interpretivist research approach was used, whereby the development and evolution of an artisan bakers’ horizontal network was studied over a 27-month period. The findings, as summarised in conceptual models which draw upon knowledge-based open innovation and social network constructs, illustrate that a complex three-stage life cycle development occurred within the bakers’ horizontal network.

Neoliberalism, the University, Public Goods, and Agricultural Innovation

After World War II, most industrialising nations adopted some form of welfare-state approach to balance the economic activities of self-interested agents and social welfare. In the realm of scientific research and innovation, this often meant that governments took primary responsibility for funding public research organisations, including research universities and government laboratories. Over the past four decades, however, the significance of private funding for agricultural research has increased, and academic scientists now often work in public-private partnerships. We argue that this trend needs to be carefully monitored because public goods are likely to be overlooked and undervalued in such arrangements. In the interest of developing indicators to monitor the trend, we document public and private funding for agricultural research and agricultural innovation in four countries: the USA, the UK, Ireland and Germany. Our results show that although neoliberalism is evident in each country, it is not homogeneous in its application and impacts, suggesting that national and institutional contexts matter. This article is directed at stimulating debates on the relationships between university research, agricultural innovation and public goods.

Higher education for democratic innovation

A comparative examination of the role of higher education in promoting democratic values and practice in a changing world. The book examines case studies of regions facing specific challenges arsing form conflict or disadvantage, the role of universities as anchor institutions, strategies for inclusion and the role of new technologies.

Social Risk of Public Spending Cuts in Scotland: Local Authority Experiences

This paper relates to work supported by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation which examines the way Scottish Local Authorities have approached budget cuts (Asenova, et. al., 2013). Starting with a discussion of notions of social risk, we discuss the heightened challenges faced by local authorities. We note that the literature on public sector innovation predict such pressures would cause local authorities to engage in short term decision making and adopt a static coping approach to risk mitigation which is likely to stifle innovation and obstruct the creation of more coherent and resilient localities. Although we find this to have happened in some areas, we discuss two cases where these challenges have promoted innovative and inclusive approaches to service re-design and delivery.

Innovation in tourism: the role of regional innovation systems

Esta tese tem como principal objetivo analisar as características, a importância e o papel da inovação territorial em turismo e o seu impacto no desenvolvimento dos destinos. Consiste num estudo multidisciplinar suportado numa exaustiva revisão da literatura sobre temas como desenvolvimento, inovação e modelos de inovação territorial. Com base nas principais conclusões de natureza conceptual, considerou-se o modelo dos sistemas regionais de inovação como o mais adequado para aplicação ao sistema turístico, e a constituição de redes como estruturas fundamentais para a sua operacionalização. A partir desta abordagem teórica, foi desenvolvido um quadro conceptual para a análise da inovação sistémica no sector do turismo. Esta abordagem permitiu a definição de um conjunto de hipóteses, as quais foram testadas através dos resultados da parte empírica da tese. Foram desenvolvidos dois estudos empíricos distintos, mas complementares nas regiões do Douro e de Aveiro. O primeiro teve como objetivo inquirir empresas turísticas, enquanto o segundo foi dirigido a instituições regionais com intervenção no sector do turismo ou na inovação. Os resultados obtidos conduziram a importantes conclusões sobre o desempenho das empresas e regiões em termos de inovação, os padrões de networking desenvolvidos no âmbito de processos de inovação, a importância do conhecimento existente nas regiões e os fatores específicos das mesmas para a inovação em turismo, a perceção das empresas turísticas sobre o ambiente de inovação e o seu contributo para a evolução e para o sucesso dos destinos turísticos. A tese recorre a uma abordagem quantitativa que inclui estatística descritiva e indutiva e ao método da análise de redes (sociometria). A combinação de métodos levou a importantes conclusões sobre a inovação em turismo, com uma focalização especial no que a relaciona com os sistemas regionais de inovação. As conclusões permitem avançar com um conjunto de implicações e sugestões para futuros projetos de investigação sobre o tema, bem como para a gestão dos destinos turísticos, uma vez que contribui para um maior e mais aprofundado conhecimento do fenómeno da inovação em turismo desenvolvida a nível regional. Os resultados demonstram que diferentes regiões apresentam sistemas regionais de inovação distintos. Assim, não existe um modelo único que possa ser aplicado indistintamente em todas as regiões. Contudo, as conclusões apontam para a existência de padrões e práticas que aperfeiçoam o seu funcionamento, aumentando o desempenho ao nível da inovação, bem como a competitividade global do destino.

Leading as designing: how educational developers in leadership and management studies can use architectural design to facilitate student learning about delivering innovation

This paper describes a qualitative observational study of how a work based learning masters leadership development programme for middle managers in health and social care in the UK introduced students to key aspects of delivering innovation, through a formative assignment on contemporary architectural design. Action learning and activity theoretical approaches were used to enable students to explore common principles of leading the delivery of innovation. Between 2001 and 2013 a total of 89 students in 7 cohorts completed the assignment. Evaluation lent support for the view that the assignment provided a powerful learning experience for many. Several students found the creativity, determination and dedication of architects, designers and structural engineers inspirational in their ability to translate a creative idea into a completed artefact, deploy resources and negotiate complex demands of stakeholders. Others expressed varying levels of self-empowerment as regards their capacity for fostering an equivalent creativity in self and others. Theoretical approaches in addition to activity theory, including Engeström’s concepts of stabilisation knowledge and possibility knowledge, are discussed to explain these differing outcomes and to clarify the challenges and opportunities for educational developers seeking to utilise cross-disciplinary, creative approaches in curriculum design.

Regional collaborations and indigenous innovation capabilities in China: A multivariate method for the analysis of regional innovation systems

In this study we analyse the emerging patterns of regional collaboration for innovation projects in China, using official government statistics of 30 Chinese regions. We propose the use of Ordinal Multidimensional Scaling and Cluster analysis as a robust method to study regional innovation systems. Our results show that regional collaborations amongst organisations can be categorised by means of eight dimensions: public versus private organisational mindset; public versus private resources; innovation capacity versus available infrastructures; innovation input (allocated resources) versus innovation output; knowledge production versus knowledge dissemination; and collaborative capacity versus collaboration output. Collaborations which are aimed to generate innovation fell into 4 categories, those related to highly specialised public research institutions, public universities, private firms and governmental intervention. By comparing the representative cases of regions in terms of these four innovation actors, we propose policy measures for improving regional innovation collaboration within China.

Small farmers and sustainability: institutional barriers to investment and innovation in the Malaysian palm oil industry in Sabah

The Malaysian palm oil industry is well known for the social, environmental and sustainability challenges associated with its rapid growth over the past ten years. Technologies exist to reduce the conflict between national development aims of economic uplift for the rural poor, on the one hand, and ecological conservation, on the other hand, by raising yields and incomes from areas already under cultivation. But the uptake of these technologies has been slow, particularly in the smallholder sector. In this paper we explore the societal and institutional challenges that influence the investment and innovation decisions of micro and small enterprise (MSE) palm oil smallholders in Sabah, Malaysia. Based on interviews with 38 smallholders, we identify a number of factors that reduce the smallholders' propensity to invest in more sustainable practices. We discuss why more effective practices and innovations are not being adopted using the concepts of, firstly, institutional logics to explore the internal dynamics of smallholder production systems, including attitudes to sustainability and innovation; and, secondly, institutional context to explore the pressures the smallholders face, including problems of access to land, labour, capital, knowledge and technical resources. These factors include limited access to global market information, corruption and uncertainties of legal title, weak economic status and social exclusion. In discussing these factors we seek to contribute to wider theoretical debates about the factors that block innovation and investment in business improvements in marginal regions and in marginalised groups.

Cultural innovation and transmission of tool use in wild chimpanzees:evidence from field experiments

Animal Cognition, V.6, pp. 213-223

Plano de negócios para a inovação, fabrico e comercialização de biscoitos portugueses, envolvendo a componente empresarial e social do empreendedorismo

O empreendedorismo tem-se assumido cada vez mais como uma área impulsionadora do desenvolvimento económico dos vários países. O empreendedor tem-se mostrado como um indivíduo capaz de forçar este desenvolvimento através da implementação das suas ideias e projetos criativos e/ou através da sustentabilidade em áreas menos desenvolvidas. De notar que o empreendedorismo atua nas mais diversas áreas, desde a tecnologia, passando pelo turismo, agricultura, atividades industriais ou até mesmo ao nível da responsabilidade e atuação social. Não é portanto, um veículo de desenvolvimento de países ricos ou pobres, desenvolvidos ou em vias de desenvolvimento, é sim, um meio de alcançar mais e melhores resultados, funcionando como força motriz igualmente importante, em grandes metrópoles ou em meios locais rurais. Para que os projetos de empreendedorismo avancem (ou não), é essencial saber reter do plano de negócio a sua real utilidade. Esta ferramenta ao serviço do empreendedor visa ajudar na tomada de decisão, tornando todos os elementos direta ou indiretamente ligados ao projeto, efetivamente visíveis, para que seja viável analisar o seu impacto. Deste modo, pretende-se com esta dissertação dar resposta a questões relacionadas com a viabilidade económico-financeira do projeto em estudo, procurando impulsionar a economia local e nacional através da recuperação e valorização de biscoitos nacionais. É também intuito incluir a perspetiva da Responsabilidade Social neste projeto, para que haja um real intercâmbio de saberes com a comunidade.

The effect of social and environmental sustainability on firm resilience

Double degree

The characteristics of social entrepreneurship business models in Portugal

This work project is based on the MIES (Map of Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship in Portugal) database and it aims to understand the characteristics of social business models in the context of the portuguese market, by determining whether they follow the proposed characteristics by John Elkington and Pamela Hartigan, and then adding to their matrix. Furthermore, it tries to determine success patterns by comparing a group of successful social ventures with a group of less successful ones, with the objective of increasing the knowledge of social entrepreneurship as it applies to Portugal and provide a framework for future study.

Conservatisme et innovation chez les potières iroquoiennes du site Droulers-Tsiionhiakwatha

Ce mémoire tente d’établir la position sociale et culturelle de la communauté villageoise du XVᵉ siècle du site Droulers dans l’espace iroquoien du Saint-Laurent. À partir d’une analyse morpho-stylistique de la poterie, et particulièrement les vases décorés au dentelé, ce mémoire examine la variabilité culturelle du site et sa participation au sein de la sphère d’interactions des Iroquoiens du Saint-Laurent. La comparaison des tendances stylistiques de Droulers et des communautés voisines contribue ainsi à cerner la position chronologique ainsi que l’apparentement culturel du site au sein de sa région immédiate et des régions occidentale et centrale. Les caractères stylistiques à la fois conservateurs et progressistes relevés sur le site Droulers lui sont propres et expriment à la fois l’homogénéité du site et une certaine indépendance stylistique au sein de sa région. Sur cette base, nous avons déterminé que l’usage du dentelé n’a pas une valeur chronologique fiable à des fins de sériation dans le cas spécifique de Droulers, mais qu’il peut toutefois servir comme marqueur régional distinctif. Cet attribut ainsi que d’autres tendances régionales significatives nous ont ainsi servi à mieux cerner les similarités stylistiques entre les sites et à déterminer que Droulers s’apparente plus particulièrement aux sites Mandeville et Lanoraie, et dans une moindre mesure au site McIvor. De plus, nous avons pu établir que le site Droulers s’intègre dans un réseau d’interactions complexe, le rapprochant de communautés situées autant à l’Est qu’à l’Ouest le long de la vallée du Saint-Laurent. Finalement, l’ensemble des tendances morpho-stylistiques confirme la position chronologique du site, soit à la fin du XVᵉ siècle, et ce malgré une proportion importante du décor au dentelé, traditionnellement considéré comme une caractéristique des sites plus anciens.