https://doi.org/10.4081/peasa.52
New challenges for innovation policies in an uneven European innovation panorama: lessons from evaluation experiences
Submitted: January 7, 2025
Accepted: February 28, 2025
Published: March 18, 2025
Accepted: February 28, 2025
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All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
The article addresses the recent changes in science and innovation policy studies from an European perspective. Based on the monitoring and evaluation exercises of four different innovation policy exercises carried out in Spain over the last years, we reflect on the challenges of European innovation policy. The monitoring and evaluation exercises cover different administrative levels (national, regional and European) and methodological approaches (impact evaluation and more qualitative-oriented) including: an impact-evaluation exercise of the Research and Development (R&D) public funding programme for firms granted by the main innovation agency in Spain (The Centre for the Development for Industrial Technology CDTI); two survey-based research on R&D from the workers and from the managerial perspective; and a monitoring exercise on the Smart Specialisation Exercises (S3) of three regions (Extremadura, Valencian Community and Catalonia) and the national S3 programme. We find that it is important to address the strengths and limitations of programmes and policies framed in previous innovation policies (innovation for growth and national systems of innovations), while improving coordination between innovation policies with other policy areas, layers (strategic, managerial and performance) and levels (national and regional). In addition, we signal the importance of broadening the understanding innovation to move towards a more transformative-oriented policy paradigm. We indicate that a broad understanding of innovation is especially important for less developed countries and regions to catch-up.
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How to Cite
Molero-Zayas, J., García-Sánchez, A., & Fernández-Zubieta, A. (2025). New challenges for innovation policies in an uneven European innovation panorama: lessons from evaluation experiences. Proceedings of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts, 4. https://doi.org/10.4081/peasa.52
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