Avhandling i fulltext - Forskning

English summary
Dissertation title: Joint action for innovation - a participative and gender scientific
challenge of innovation policy and innovation research
In recent decades, politicians, civil servants and scientists have drawn attention to the
role that joint action plays in the emergence of innovations. Among other things, the
importance of the joint action networks with participants from different sectors of
society has been stressed. Joint action networks - otherwise referred to as ‘innovation
systems’, ‘triple helix’ and ‘clusters’ - are believed to contribute to the development of
innovations. Through national and regional authorities, public funding is distributed to
such joint action networks in order to encourage innovation and with the ultimate goal
of attaining ‘sustainable growth’. However, critiques have been articulated towards the
public promotion of innovation systems and clusters that marginalises certain actors
and areas. In particular, women and industries employing many women have been
disadvantaged by the priorities made. The marginalization occurs despite the fact that
several of the industries employing many women - primarily services industries - are
attributed a central role in the transformation of Western economies to become more
dynamic and knowledge-based. Neither policy makers nor researchers have analyzed
how joint action networks promote innovation within women dominated settings. This
dissertation strives to address that gap by depicting some Swedish efforts employed to
organize joint action networks based on women’s entrepreneurship and innovation.
Both policy and research have been characterized by a ‘top down’ approach,
discerning only a limited scope of actors and areas as relevant in the area of joint
action networks promoting innovation. In contrast, this thesis considers that a ‘bottom
up‘ approach could highlight the importance of a broader spectrum of actors and areas.
The dissertation extends the arena for knowledge development in the area of joint
action networks by depicting some of the actors and areas currently marginalized in
innovation policy and innovation research. This study questions the existing norms
utilised to categorise and measure innovation systems and clusters and scrutinises how
325