This course will introduce a range of topics in the area of economics of innovation and technological change. It will focus mainly on the “what, why and how” of technological change and innovative activities but will also occasionally examine its significant impact on economic outcomes at different levels of analysis. 

Week 1: Introduction and technology as knowledge

1) Dosi, G. and Nelson, R.R. (2010), “Technical change and industrial dynamics as evolutionary processes” in: B. Hall and N. Rosenberg (eds), Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, pp. 52-95 (sections 1, 2 and 3)

2) Fagerberg, J. (2005), “Innovation: A Guide to the Literature”, in J. Fagerberg, D. Mowery and R. Nelson (eds), Oxford Handbook of Innovation, Oxford and New York, Oxford University Press, 56-85.

Week 2: Technology as knowledge: implications (2)

1) Balconi, M., Pozzali, A. and Viali, R. (2007), “The “codification debate” revisited: A conceptual framework to analyze the role of tacit knowledge in economics”, Industrial and Corporate Change, 16, 823-49.

2) Foray, D. (2007), “Tacit and codified knowledge”, in H. Hanusch and A. Pyka (eds), Elgar Companion to Neo-Schumpeterian Economics, Edward Elgar, vol. 1, 235-247.

Week 3: Economics of Knowledge 

Presentations will be based on the following book: Foray, D. (2004), Economics of Knowledge, MIT Press, Cambridge(chapters 1-6).

Week 4: Introduction to Evolutionary economics 

2) Dosi G. and Nelson, R. (2010), “Technical change and industrial dynamics as evolutionary processess”, in Hall, B. and Rosenberg eds., Handbook of Economics of Innovation, pp. 52-127.  

5) Rahmeyer, F. (2007), “From a routine-based to a knowledge-based view: towards an evolutionary theory of the firm”, in Hanusch, H. and Pyke, A. (eds), Elgar Companion to Neo-Schumpeterian Economics, pp. 159-181.e of Firm 

6) Nelson, R. (1993), “The Role of Firm Difference in an Evolutionary Theory of Technical Advance”, in Magnusson, L. (eds) Evolutionary and neo-Schumpeterian Approaches to Economics, Kluwer: Boston, pp. 231-242.

Week 5: Technology diffusion 

2) Stoneman, P. (2007) “Technological diffusion: aspects of self-propagation as a neo-Schumpeterian characteristic”, in Hanusch, H. and Pyke, A. (eds), Elgar Companion to Neo-Schumpeterian Economics, pp. 377-385.

3) Lãuça, F (2007), Innovation and demand, in Hanusch, H. and Pyke, A. (eds), Elgar Companion to Neo-Schumpeterian Economics, pp. 766-774.

4) Perez, C. (2007), Finance and technical change: a long-term view, in Hanusch, H. and Pyke, A. (eds), Elgar Companion to Neo-Schumpeterian Economics, pp. 775-779.

Week 6: Competing technologies, lock-in

1) Arthur, B. (1989), Competing technologies, increasing returns and lock-in by historical events, Economic Journal, 99, 116-131.

2) David, P. (1985), Clio and the economics of QWERTY, American Economic Review, 75 (2), 332-7

3) Cowan, R. (1990), Nuclear power reactors: A study of technology lock-in, Journal of Economic History, 50, 541-567.

4) Cowan, R. (1991), Tortoises and Hares: Choice among technologies of unknown merit, Economic Journal, 101 (July), 801-814.

Week 7: Technological Paradigms

Week 8: Innovation models

1) Kline, S.J. and N. Rosenberg (1986), “An overview of innovation”, in R. Landau and N. Rosenberg (eds), The Positive Sum Strategy: Harnessing Technology for Economic Growth, National Academy Press, Washington, DC, 275-305. 

3) Salter, A and O. Alexy (2015), “The Nature of Innovation”, in M. Dodgson,D. M. Gann, and Ne. Phillips (eds), Oxford Handbook of Innovation Management, Oxford and New York, Oxford University Press.

4) Pavitt, K. (2005), “Innovation processes”, J. Fagerberg, D. Mowery and R. Nelson (eds), Oxford Handbook of Innovation, Oxford and New York, Oxford University Press, 86-114.

Week 9: Innovation networks

1) Powell, W.W. and S. Grodal (2005), “Network of innovators”, in J. Fagerberg, D. Mowery and R. Nelson (eds), Oxford Handbook of Innovation, Oxford and New York, Oxford University Press, 56-85.

2) Pyka, A. (2007), “Innovation networks”, in H. Hanusch and A. Pyka (eds), Elgar Companion to Neo-Schumpeterian Economics, Edward Elgar, 360-376.

3) Kastelle, T. and J. Steen (2015), “Networks of Innovation”, in M. Dodgson,D. M. Gann, and N. Phillips (eds), Oxford Handbook of Innovation Management, Oxford and New York, Oxford University Press.

Week 10: Systems of innovation

1) Edquist, C. (2005), “Systems of innovation: Perspectives and challenges”, in J. Fagerberg, D. Mowery and R. Nelson (eds), Oxford Handbook of Innovation, Oxford and New York, Oxford University Press, 181-208.

2) Soete, L., Verspagen, B. and B. Ter Weel (2010), “Systems of innovation”, in: B. Hall and N. Rosenberg (eds), Handbook of the Economics of Innovation, 1160-1181.

3) Carlsson, B., Jacobsson, S., Holmen, M. and A. Rickne (2002), “Innovation systems: analytical and methodological issues”, Research Policy, 31, 233-245.

4) Bergek, A., Jacobsson, S. Carlsson, B. Lindmark, S.  and A. Rickne (2008), “Analyzing the functional dynamics of technological innovation systems: A scheme of analysis” Research Policy, 37, 3, 407-429.

Week 11: System of innovation

5) Malerba, F. (2002), “Sectoral systems of innovation and production”, Research Policy, 247-264.

Week 12: Technology and Economic Development

1) Fagerberg, J; Srholec, M., Verspagen, B. (2010), “Innovation and economic development”, in Hall, B. and Rosenberg eds., Handbook of Economics of Innovation, pp. 834-872.   

2) Temple, J (1999), The new growth evidence, Journal of Economic Literature, 37, 112-156. 

3) Abramowitz, M (1993), The search for the sources of growth: areas of ignorance, old and new, Journal of Economic History, 53(2), pp. 217-43.

4) Verspagen, B. (1992), Endogenous innovation in neo-classical growth models: a survey, Journal of Macroeconomics, 14(4), 631-62.

Week 13-14: Science and Technology Policy

1) Chaminade, C. and Edquist, C. (2010), Rationales for public policy intervention in the innovation process, in Smits, R.E., Kuhlmann, S. and Shapira, P., The theory and practice of innovation policy, Edward Elgar: Cheltenham. pp. 95-114.    

2) Metcalfe, J.S. (1994), Evolutionary economics and technology policy, Economic Journal, 104 (425), 931-944.

3) Smits, P. Kuhlmann, S. and Teubal, M. (2010), A system-evolutionary approach for innovation policy, in Smits,  R.E., Kuhlmann, S. and Shapira, P., The theory and practice of innovation policy, Edward Elgar: Cheltenham. pp. 417-449.