Workshop on Network Approaches to Innovation, Paris, 8 December 2008

Jointly organised by the OECD Directorate for Science, Technology and Industry (DSTI) and the OECD Statistics Directorate (STD)

The objective of this seminar was to take stock of advances in social networks analysis and explore the possible use of this approach in OECD work, notably on innovation. 

Network theory is a large and complex field. It is based on the idea that the architecture of communication and interactions between socio-economic entities is an essential determinant in their behavior and in the resulting outcomes. Many developments are rather recent and embody ramifications in social sciences and theory of complexity. While its applications to social sciences have developed in recent years, the key results and messages have not yet percolated in mainstream economics.

Against this background, this seminar aimed to:

• 1) present the network approach to economists;
• 2) discuss the analytical potential of this approach with experts, notably for innovation analysis and measurement.

The following presentations are available:

• Workshop introduction and overview
  by Dominique Guellec (DSTI, OECD) and Joaquim Oliveira-Martins (STD, OECD)
• Network theory: the basics
  by Jason Owen-Smith (Associate Professor, Sociology and Organisational Studies, University of Michigan)
• The economics of innovation networks
  by Jean-Benoit Zimmermann (GREMAQ and CNRS, France)
• On networks, technology and growth
  by Fabio Pammolli (Professor, Lucca Institute for Advanced Studies, Italy)
• Who cultivates the inter-firm networks in regional clusters?
  by Ichiro Sakata (Professor, University of Tokyo)
• Measurement of social networks and innovation
  by Fred Gault (Special Adviser for the OECD Innovation Strategy)