White Spaces Innovation in Sweden - Innovation policy for ... - Vinnova

WHITE SPACES INNOVATION IN SWEDENin evolutionary economic geography as a key characteristic of „emergence‟ (see Martin& Sunley, 2011). Such processes are in Kauffman‟s (2008) terms, essentially „lawless‟.In Fig. 4.1 a scheme is elaborated of the complex „emergence‟ of innovation through„preadaptation‟ and/or the „adjacent possible‟ in relation to „attractors‟ and especially„strange attractors‟ after Kauffman (2008).Figure 4.1 The Nature of Emergence of Innovation: A Complexity PerspectiveNOVELTYADAPTATION BYIMITATIONCLUSTERINTERACTIONCOGNITIVEREVERSALPREADAPTATION’EDGE OFCHAOS’ADJACENT POSSIBLESTRANGE ATTRACTORSEMERGENCESource: Centre for Advanced StudiesWhat occurs in Fig. 4.1 (compare Fig. 3.3) is that Martin & Sunley‟s path interdependenceevolves on the plane of a complex adaptive system. In analogue form, thisis a regional economy that is invested with a topology (Fig. 2.2). The topological routeways(path dependencies) favour certain deviations and disfavour others. At a givenpoint they meet as the convergence of socio-technical systems (STS). This conceptcomes from the co-evolutionary multi-level perspective (MLP), which demonstrateshow innovation occurs through the interaction of STS that were hitherto path dependent(Geels, 2007). This occurs not only when such trajectories are related or natural attractorsbut particularly when they are „strange attractors‟. Strange attractors display „revealedrelatedness‟ rather than obvious relatedness. While both can facilitate innovation,that caused by „strange attractors‟ has the possibility to be of the most radical kind. Thisis because an adjacent possible that is utterly unknown is being explored. This meansthe possibilities for secondary innovations are great, as can be demonstrated in relationto „informatisation‟ which has released cascades of innovation – ranging from graphicinterface and „mouse‟ to e-mail, Internet and Facebook. Contrariwise in Fig.4.1 (unlikeFig. 3.3) the „preadaptation‟ route is either moderately surprising because it involves a„cognitive reversal‟ of an existing innovation – as in Kauffman‟s favourite metaphor ofthe tractor chassis that always broke due to the weight of the engine, being replaced bythe engine itself being bolted to the back axle and drive-train. Alternatively „preadapta-76