Social innovation
The term Social innovation refers to the process of formation, implementation and dissemination of new social practices across different sectors of society. While 'innovation' literally, innovation 'or' renewal ' means is, socially ' either the interaction of people or - if it is normatively used - good for the society and its members meant '. In innovation research social innovation are addressed either as a prerequisite or as concomitant consequences of technological innovations. The questions, making an innovation in a social innovation, whether this benefit society is the decisive criterion, and how this can be determined, are discussed controversially. There is broad agreement, however, about the fact that the term refers to innovations that have a direct connection with the search for solutions to social problems and challenges. These solutions are often new ways of communication and cooperation. Dealing with social innovation as a key socio- theoretical and political concept is becoming increasingly important.
Emergence of the concept
The mention of social innovation goes back to the origins of innovation research, as its founder Joseph Schumpeter with his 1912 published " The Theory of Economic Development" applies. As an independent phenomenon Social Innovation in the German language was first systematically treated in a paper by Wolfgang Zapf in 1989. Zapf defined social innovation as " new ways to achieve goals, in particular new forms of organization, new regulations, new lifestyles that change the direction of social change, to better solve problems than previous practices, and are therefore worthy to be imitated and institutionalized ". According to Zapf scientific progress and practical experience necessary - so that social innovations come, are - as with technical. The resulting based on Zapf Post by Gillwald (2000) contains a similar definition: " Social innovations are, in brief, socially consequential, from the previously normal schedule different regulations of activities and procedures. They are everywhere in social systems possible as a result of behavioral changes and related but not identical with the technical innovations ".
Starting with the theming of the " Limits to Growth" and an increasingly critical perspective on technological developments and their potential for resolving problems in the 1970s, more and more of the need for comprehensive social innovations of the question. This tendency is enhanced in response to a still fixed technology innovation policy. Although the term has experienced such widespread attention in recent years, he has remained the same content extremely blurred and is mostly used in the sense of a purely descriptive metaphor for all kinds of phenomena in the area of social change.
Theoretical background
In the understanding of innovation by Schumpeter social innovations were supplementary role to ensure the economic efficiency of technological innovation. This was true for the areas of economy, culture, politics and social life. But only with the transition from an industrial to a knowledge and service economy, which attracted a growth in importance of social innovation towards technical after themselves, to social innovation has established itself as an independent concept in science. This concept plays a central role in an emerging new innovation paradigm, which assumes that innovation is not more than a linear process that takes takes place ( science and research into marketable products and services), but as a complex social process. An essential feature of this new innovation paradigm is the opening of the innovation process towards the society. In addition to companies, universities and research institutions and citizens and customers with relevant actors in the innovation process by contributing to the development of new products to solve problems. Terms and concepts such as open innovation ', customer integration, networks reflect individual aspects of this development.
In business and in social science research, however, the focus on technical innovation remain predominant. In the German engineering and industrial sociology - in sociology in the first place in innovation research active - play social innovation as a concept no major role. With Werner Rammert a renowned German technology sociologist recognizes social innovation as an independent concept and calls under its consideration a basic conceptual reorientation of innovation research. Rammert proposes a two-stage model that identifies innovations on the other by relations on the one hand and for references. The relations are determined in the temporal ( old / new), objective ( similar / novel ) and social (normal / different) dimension. The references that relate to the objectives of innovation are, for example, the economic, political, social or artistic innovation. Rammert Thus speaks out for a conceptual differentiation between technical and social innovations, because these - according to his model - are on two completely different logic levels. "Technically or engineered in terms of innovation refers to the type of constituent relations and is not a stand-alone reference ," as opposed to socially '.
However, in recent times can be just barely important social innovations in developed societies show that are not closely related to particular technical and innovations in media technology. If social innovations always also enables new forms of interaction or be accompanied interaction media such as must social networks play a significant role. Thus, the concepts of open innovation, e-commerce or the customer integration in product development and configuration without the Internet, databases, search engines, etc., are not feasible and rain reversed its progress to. Web 2.0 provides the technical platform for numerous social innovations, such as, conversely, the normative theme of the prosumer drives the development of Web 2.0. The Internet is a medium so-called " mega-trends " in order, such as Transparency, and catalyzes this.
Additional theoretical and conceptual research questions include the question of what makes an innovation to social innovation, if there is ever a specific subject area of social innovation, such as social innovation and social change differ, what characterizes the conditions and ways of their genesis and distribution and which role of the social sciences can play in the production or evaluation of social innovation and should.
At the level of the actors of motivation is explored alongside questions, under what conditions can cooperate actors in civil society motivated social innovation with previous decision makers in government, politics and business.
Research fields
Social innovations are found in various forms in diverse sectors of society, thus leaving a number of research fields emerge. Among the topics that are the focus of research in particular, include innovations in services ( with special focus on social and health- related services), within companies and organizations with new innovation (eg corporate social innovation) and management concepts, in local and regional approaches of human resource management and training strategies in the field of sustainability (eg regional management of the consequences of climate change ), in the social economy and social integration, in the cultural and creative economy in the use of information and communication technologies.
There have been several attempts in science to catalog the manifestations of social innovation and the related fields of research. Gillwald about assigns selected examples of social innovations three major functional areas of society - civil society, the economy and the state - to. In the area of civil society, it is, for example, the increased importance of non -marital unions or the environmental movement, in the area of economy, the introduction of the assembly line work, quality management and fast-food chains in the area of governance, the introduction of social security and introduced in the 1970s local government reform.
The four research fields in which the concept of social innovation is now implemented more widely in social science research were identified by Moulaert, Martinelli, Swyngedouw and Gonzalez. Accordingly, it finds application in management and organizational research, in studies on the relationship between competitiveness and social responsibility of the companies in the research and creativity in the context of processes of local and regional development.
To social innovation to help in practice to break through that research is increasingly reported studies Master of Arts innovation course at the Danube University Krems in Austria or the BA management support such as Social Innovation at the University of Munich in social, management knowledge to convey the design, implementation and support of social innovation.
Social innovation in society and politics
In the discourse of civil society Social innovations are called for increased since about the turn of the millennium. This is reflected not least reflected in the emergence of non-governmental organizations (eg foundations and institutions) in many countries, which contribute significantly to the spread of social innovations. So is, for example, the center was founded in Vienna in 1990 for Social Innovation within the framework of the action program "Social Innovation 2015 " to ensure that by 2015, "Concepts for social innovation in public discourses effectively anchored and in key social sectors such as economy, education policy and a growing number are realized by effective social innovation " and them " plays a similar role, as it so far have only economically viable technological innovations ".
At the political level is an increasing awareness of the importance of social innovation determine as engines of innovation society. In the U.S., " Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation " in the White House a "Fund for Social Innovation " with 50 million U.S. dollars in fiscal year 2010, after the inauguration of President Obama established and equipped. Contents are education, health, and economic issues and problems. The EU Commission is also going to promote social innovation more and to contribute to its spread. President Barroso said in 2009: "Creativity and innovation in general and social innovation in particular in times of economic and financial crisis, the key factors for promoting sustainable growth, securing jobs and increase competitiveness ." Already in the 1990s had begun to rethink in European innovation policy. In the EU research framework programs, Social was significantly enhanced compared to the technology and innovation in the Green Paper, which issued the European Commission in 1995, it said: "Innovation is not just an economic mechanism or a technical process. It is primarily a social phenomenon [ ... ]. Therefore, the purpose, impact and innovation environment are closely linked to the social climate in which it arises. "