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practitioners have developed their own preferred definitions by emphasizing different
aspects of social innovations. Therefore, today the concept of social innovation remains a
compilation of different ideas and approaches without any established definition. Our
review of the various definitions suggests that the definitional variety of social innovation
many include different contexts, preferences, approaches and theoretical disciplines. Some
authors suggest that there are two types of theories in circulation in the field of social
innovation – some are theories to interpret the world, concerned with description and
analysis; others are theories to change the world, more deliberately designed to encourage
and advocate (Mulgan, 2012).
In this respect, this paper seeks to analyze the concept of social innovation within the
context of sustainable development discourse by synthetizing the established and emerging
definitions of social innovation. The literature review indicates that social innovation may
have many definitions within sustainable development discourse since it is interrelated with
such concepts as social entrepreneurship, sustainability, social welfare, etc. From reviewing
the many definitions of social innovation, it is clear that the context in which they were
created matters to a great extent.
The nature and power of discourse needs to be identified in all theoretical constructions
(Foucault, 1972). Discourse actively forms and constructs people’s perceptions of reality
(and consequent behavior). Once definitions are formulated within the discourse of theory,
the disciplines that frame the theory appear to become the defining aspects of the result
itself. Therefore, when a definition of social innovation is formulated within the discourse of
innovation theory, innovation theory becomes the defining aspect of the resulting
definition. When a definition of social innovation is formulated within the discourse of the
social sciences, social scientific theory becomes the defining aspect of the result. Some
authors argue that the social sciences have reinterpreted the innovation process (Howaldt &
Kopp, 2012). Indeed, social meanings are produced within social institutions and contexts,
and the language they share; therefore, a discourse could be viewed as a perspective, a
conceptual framework, and as a way of looking at things amongst those operating within
the discourse. Foucault (1972) states that a discourse is an active, forming, constructing
practice, which forms and constructs people’s perceptions of reality, and conscious or
subconscious constructions that lead to practice or behavior. Therefore, the discourse of
theory operates in exactly the same way. In this research it could be argued that a definition
of social innovation is formulated within the discourse of sustainable development theory,
so sustainable development theory becomes the defining aspect of the resulting definition.
In this line, this paper seeks to contribute to the current understanding of a social
innovation within sustainable development context, and provide a comprehensive overview
of the existing literature by synthesizing existing conceptual studies on social innovation and
its co-related concepts. Many authors emphasize that theory needs to catch up with
practice because sharper theory will help to clarify what is and what isn’t known, and
sharper theory will also guide practice (Mulgan, 2012).
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