HansWerner Franz

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Social Science Production or Social Innovation
by Social Production of Science

• Hans-Werner Franz
• Paper submitted to the 2nd International
  Conference on Indicators and Concepts of
  Innovation (ICICI 2008)
• Berne (Switzerland), 3-4 July 2008
  franz_at_sfs-dortmund.de

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Social research as an actor of social innovation

• Normally
• social innovation is the object of social
  researchlike in this conference
• We
• introduce social research as a socially
  innovative actor social innovation with social
  research
• OUR PROGRAMME

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A knowledge-based society

• Knowledge-based society means
• More knowledge
• is materialised in products and services
• is personalised in human workforce
• is required for the development of new products
  and services
• is produced in an extended and higher developed
  tertiary education and training sector (life-long
  learning)
• More science in society

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Social research in a knowledge-based society

• the expectations of social practice towards all
  sciences, incl. social science, are changing
• social actors make a more reflective use of
  scientific knowledge and outcomes
• fitness for use (Juran) becoming an essential
  criterion for knowledge (along with scientific
  reliability)
• the role of science for and in society is being
  defined in a different way shift from knowledge
  transfer to co-production of knowledge

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Mode 2 Social Science Production

• A new relationship between social science and
  society
• the production of social science through
• the social production of sciencewith
• new specific conditions and requirements for the
  social practice of social scienceresulting in
• socially robust knowledge (Nowotny et al. 2001
  Re-Thinking Science)

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A new type of research projects

• Essentials
• complex cross-disciplinary and cross-institutional
  networks
• production of knowledge in the framework of
  company-based, regional, sector or institutional
  processes of improvement and innovation
• producing a higher field-specific control
  potential
• projects organised as double-loop or cultural
  learning processes
• Social Networking Research

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Two modes of science production
Academic science production
Social science production
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Social Networking Research

• projects based on
• problem definition and development as a social
  process of consensus building and negotiation
• orientation towards being useful by solving
  specific practical problems
• problem solving knowledge production in the
  framework of complex cross-disciplinary and
  cross-institutional networks
• flexible dynamic forms of project organisation
• new approaches, methods and tools of networking
• multi-dimensional criteria of process and
  result-related evaluation (usefulness
  scientific standards)
• Scientific evidence social usefulness

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A new type of social researchers

• Social Networking Research Management (managing
  difference, diversity and integration) includes
  the following functions
• the management of research networks with partners
  of differentiated social and disciplinary origin
• the development of innovative concepts
• organisational development (learning
  arrangements)
• explicit or implicit training in project
  management techniques
• extracting and elaborating socially robust
  knowledge
• and adding and relating to the scientific
  community (Mode 1)
• Researchers in a sandwich position with a
  double-bind situation

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A new type of social research organisations

• Social Networking Research Organisation
• relevance related to social fields of practice,
  research markets scientific community
• success related to the type of socially
  scientifically robust products generated by such
  projects
• resources related to time, money (funding
  accounting), employment, internal networking
  structures
• services related to facilities, communication,
  assistance, catering, publications
• status profit or non-profit, increasingly VAT
  regime

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sfs evolution of self-definition

• sfs 1946-1970 academic breeder
• sfs seventies empirical research
• sfs eighties applied empirical action research
• sfs nineties transition to social science
  production
• sfs from 2000consolidation as amarket-driven
  university institute

employment 1972 12 2000 119 (96) 2008 76
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sfs the old organisation
Scientific Advisory Board
Executive director
Research Councilelected
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sfs the new organisation a network
Now reduced to 7 research areas
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sfs a network in a network 1

• Public Private Partnership
• networking as a solution
• Science Centre Minister Stein
• 20 institutes and companies
• 350 employees
• in applied research, consultancy, training

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sfs a network in a network in a network
ZMS
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Paradigmatic change 1

• sfs
• from supply to demand orientation
• from industry towards services
• from large companies to SMEs
• from passive involvement and research to active
  change management and consulting
• From research centre to competence centre

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Paradigmatic change 2

• We had to change
• our customers and fields of action
• our products
• our methods
• our tools
• our organisation
• OURSELVES

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A change agent for regional development

• must (as we know now)
• have a quality-based profile and strategy
• be(come) a vanguard in some relevant issues
• be(come) wide open for new requirements
• be(come) market and customer-oriented research
  market, networking partners, clients
• economise its internal financial and time
  structures, i.e. be(come) an advanced SME itself
• be(come) a networking organisation
• be(come) a learning organisation

is not a catalyst