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The Structure of Networks in Industrial Districts

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  • Udo Staber

Abstract

In research on industrial districts, network relations among firms and organizations are considered critical for the development and diffusion of new knowledge, with implications for innovation and regional development. A review of this literature, however, suggests that many investigators are surprisingly silent, conceptually and empirically, about the structure of innovative networks, although they often couch their arguments implicitly in structural language. The survey of a sample of 64 empirical industrial district studies shows that few researchers have measured and analysed network structures, and none have studied performance outcomes of variations in network structure. An evolutionary perspective is used to propose a research agenda for a better understanding of the relationship between network structure and innovation. Dans les recherches sur les districts industriels, les réseaux relationnels entre entreprises et organisations sont jugés essentiels pour le développement et la diffusion de nouvelles connaissances, d'où des implications pour l'innovation et l'expansion régionale. A la lumière de ces documents, on constate néanmoins que de nombreux enquèteurs sont étonnamment silencieux, à la fois au plan conceptuel et empirique, sur la structure des réseaux innovants, m?me s'ils formulent souvent leurs arguments implicitement dans un langage structural. L'examen d'un échantillon de 64 études empiriques sur les districts industriels montre que peu de chercheurs ont mesuré et analysé les structures en réseau, et qu'aucun n'a étudié les performances à la suite des variations dans ce type de structure. Appliquant une perspective évolutionniste, l'article propose un programme de recherches pour une meilleure compréhension de la relation entre structure en réseau et innovation.

Suggested Citation

  • Udo Staber, 2001. "The Structure of Networks in Industrial Districts," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(3), pages 537-552, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:ijurrs:v:25:y:2001:i:3:p:537-552
    DOI: 10.1111/1468-2427.00328
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    Cited by:

    1. Geert Vissers & Ben Dankbaar, 2016. "Spatial Aspects of Interfirm Collaboration: An Exploration of Firm-Level Knowledge Dynamics," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(2), pages 260-273, February.
    2. Dan O'Donoghue & Bill Gleave, 2004. "A Note on Methods for Measuring Industrial Agglomeration," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(4), pages 419-427.
    3. Doloreux, David & Parto, Saeed, 2005. "Regional innovation systems: Current discourse and unresolved issues," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 133-153.
    4. David Doloreux & Saeed Parto, 2004. "Regional Innovation Systems: Current Discourse and Challenges for Future Research," ERSA conference papers ersa04p56, European Regional Science Association.
    5. Luţ Dina Maria, 2012. "New Approaches On Innovation Process In The Context Of Knowledge-Based Economy. Implications For Romanian Enterprises," Anale. Seria Stiinte Economice. Timisoara, Faculty of Economics, Tibiscus University in Timisoara, vol. 0, pages 264-271, November.
    6. Fiorenza Belussi & Silvia R. Sedita, 2012. "Industrial Districts as Open Learning Systems: Combining Emergent and Deliberate Knowledge Structures," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 46(2), pages 165-184, April.
    7. Ron Boschma & Ron Martin, 2010. "The Aims and Scope of Evolutionary Economic Geography," Chapters, in: Ron Boschma & Ron Martin (ed.), The Handbook of Evolutionary Economic Geography, chapter 1, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    8. Udo Staber, 2010. "A Social-Evolutionary Perspective on Regional Clusters," Chapters, in: Ron Boschma & Ron Martin (ed.), The Handbook of Evolutionary Economic Geography, chapter 10, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    9. Parto, Saeed & Doloreux, David, 2004. "Regional Innovation Systems: A Critical Synthesis," UNU-INTECH Discussion Paper Series 2004-17, United Nations University - INTECH.
    10. Puig, Francisco & Debón, Ana & Cantarero, Santiago & Marques, Helena, 2023. "Location, profitability, and international trade liberalization in European textile-clothing firms," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    11. Giuliani, Elisa & Pietrobelli, Carlo, 2014. "Social Network Analysis Methodologies for the Evaluation of Cluster Development Programs," Papers in Innovation Studies 2014/11, Lund University, CIRCLE - Centre for Innovation Research.
    12. Katimertzopoulos, Fotios & Vlados, Charis & Koutroukis, Theodore, 2020. "Regional Innovation Systems and Less Developed Business Ecosystems: Fundamental Concepts and Theoretical Trends," DUTH Research Papers in Economics 7-2020, Democritus University of Thrace, Department of Economics.
    13. José Antonio Belso-Martínez & F. Xavier Molina-Morales, 2011. "The drivers of the open district development: a social capital approach," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 3(2), pages 49-70, June.
    14. Udo Staber, 2008. "Network Evolution in Cultural Industries," Industry and Innovation, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(5), pages 569-578.
    15. F. Xavier Molina-Morales & Josep Capó-Vicedo & M. Teresa Martínez-Fernández & Manuel Expósito-Langa, 2013. "Social capital in industrial districts: Influence of the strength of ties and density of the network on the sense of belonging to the district," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 92(4), pages 773-789, November.
    16. Expósito-Langa, Manuel & Molina-Morales, F. Xavier & Tomás-Miquel, José-Vicente, 2015. "How shared vision moderates the effects of absorptive capacity and networking on clustered firms’ innovation," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 293-302.
    17. Johannes Glückler, 2010. "The Evolution of a Strategic Alliance Network: Exploring the Case of Stock Photography," Chapters, in: Ron Boschma & Ron Martin (ed.), The Handbook of Evolutionary Economic Geography, chapter 14, Edward Elgar Publishing.

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