The evaluation of social innovation: A review and integration of the current empirical knowledge base

Abstract

Social innovation has gained prominence as a way to address social problems and needs. Evaluators and social innovators are conceptualizing and implementing evaluation approaches for social innovation contexts; however, no systematic effort has yet been made to explore and assess the overlap between evaluation and social innovation based on the empirical knowledge base. We address this gap, drawing on 28 empirical studies of evaluation in social innovation contexts to describe what evaluation practices look like, what drives those practices, and how they affect social innovations. Findings indicate most had developmental purposes, emphasized collaborative approaches, and used multiple methods. Prominent drivers were a complexity perspective, a learning-oriented focus, and the need for responsiveness. Reported influences on social innovations included advancing strategies, improving delivery, balancing aggregate and local information needs, and reducing risk. Conflict resolution, the quality of relationships, and availability of time and capacity mediated these influences. More peer-reviewed empirical studies and a broader range of study designs are needed, including research on how evaluations influence social innovation processes over time, phases, space and scale.

Co-creation of Social Innovation: Corporate Universities as Innovative Strategies for Chinese Firms to Engage with Society

“…Along with this trend of world development, the concept of corporate social innovation (CSI) has received rapidly growing scholarly and policy interest because it underscores the imperative of engaging organizations with social stakeholders. This has propelled firms to co-create and co-deliver innovation with people not only to benefit themselves, but for communities, nations and even humanity [1,9,15].…”

“…First, CSI remains a polysemous notion because the definition of social innovation is deemed to lack conceptual clarity. Numerous scholars have developed diverse typologies of social innovation from various disciplines and with distinct approaches [5][6][7][8][9]. For example, integrating the perspectives of business innovation and social awareness, Dawson and Daniel (2010, p. 16) define social innovation as "the process of collective idea generation, selection and implementation by people who participate collaboratively to meet social challenges [16].…”

“…It is multifaceted in nature and involves diversified social needs (e.g., education, poverty, exclusion, health, employment, environment, etc.) [7][8][9]. Hence, there are widespread controversies about whether CSI derives from an established social innovation theory or if it is merely a widely-existing, observable, sensory phenomena [5].…”

The Model of Social Innovation Project Evaluation

“…In the case of evaluation of social innovation projects based on dynamic realities and complex environment, it is advisable to use models based on the systems thinking and developmental evaluation approach [6]. This approach can support innovation (in the form of products, projects, programs, organizational changes, complex system interventions etc.)…”

“…Summative evaluation supports the formulation of conclusions concerning project outcomes obtained as a result of implemented processes. The combined occurrence and application of these three approaches in social innovation context is a fundamental requisite for productively conducting multifaceted research that regard social innovation evaluation [6].…”