IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v11y2019i6p1766-d216698.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Role of Stakeholders in the Context of Responsible Innovation: A Meta-Synthesis

Author

Listed:
  • Luciana Maines da Silva

    (Unisinos Business School, Unisinos University, Porto Alegre 90.470-280, Brazil)

  • Claudia Cristina Bitencourt

    (Unisinos Business School, Unisinos University, Porto Alegre 90.470-280, Brazil)

  • Kadígia Faccin

    (Unisinos Business School, Unisinos University, Porto Alegre 90.470-280, Brazil)

  • Tatiana Iakovleva

    (UiS Business School, Stavanger University, 8600 Stavanger, Norway)

Abstract

This paper contributes to the sustainability debate by analyzing the inclusion dimension in the responsible research and innovation (RRI) process. RRI is claimed to be an important tool for addressing global challenges and achieving sustainable development goals. While stakeholder involvement is considered to be imperative for the RRI process, there is little empirical evidence on (1) who the stakeholders participating in the RRI process are; (2) when stakeholders participate; (3) how stakeholders’ inclusion contributes to the sustainable innovation process; and (4) who the agents are who orchestrate stakeholders’ inclusion. This paper addresses the issue of stakeholder involvement through the lens of innovation management literature by attempting to link the innovation process to the responsibility concept. We employed a meta-synthesis of empirical studies of RRI to develop a deep understanding of stakeholder inclusion. After screening 139 articles, we identified seven empirical papers highlighting RRI process, mainly from projects nested in academic contexts. The findings indicate that multiple stakeholders are included at a late stage of the innovation process—during the market launch. To some extent, this allows for the adaptation of the solution, but such adaptations are limited in nature. This study also identifies the agents who stimulate stakeholder inclusion as being mainly academic researchers and researchers linked to multi-institutional projects. Our findings indicate that innovation management thinking is rarely applied in the governance of research and innovation projects ‘born’ in academia. We suggest enhancing RRI theoretical development by incorporating elements of innovation management such as early inclusion of users in the innovation process. For practitioners, this means an extension of the design space to allow early stakeholder inclusion in the innovation process to ensure responsible outcomes. We also identified avenues for future research. There is a need to systematically investigate which tools and frameworks for deliberate stakeholder inclusion are relevant at the various stages of the innovation and development process.

Suggested Citation

  • Luciana Maines da Silva & Claudia Cristina Bitencourt & Kadígia Faccin & Tatiana Iakovleva, 2019. "The Role of Stakeholders in the Context of Responsible Innovation: A Meta-Synthesis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-25, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:6:p:1766-:d:216698
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/6/1766/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/6/1766/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Linde Inghelbrecht & Gert Goeminne & Guido Huylenbroeck & Joost Dessein, 2017. "When technology is more than instrumental: How ethical concerns in EU agriculture co-evolve with the development of GM crops," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 34(3), pages 543-557, September.
    2. Bernd Carsten Stahl, 2013. "Responsible research and innovation: The role of privacy in an emerging framework," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 40(6), pages 708-716, September.
    3. Susanna Khavul & Garry D. Bruton, 2013. "Harnessing Innovation for Change: Sustainability and Poverty in Developing Countries," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 50(2), pages 285-306, March.
    4. Ayuso, Silvia & Rodriguez, Miguel A. & Ricart, Joan E., 2006. "Using stakeholder dialogue as a source for new ideas. A dynamic capability underlying sustainable innovation," IESE Research Papers D/633, IESE Business School.
    5. Richard Owen & Phil Macnaghten & Jack Stilgoe, 2012. "Responsible research and innovation: From science in society to science for society, with society," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 39(6), pages 751-760, December.
    6. Metze, Tamara & Schuitmaker, Tjerk Jan & Bitsch, Lise & Broerse, Jacqueline, 2017. "Breaking barriers for a bio-based economy: Interactive reflection on monitoring water quality," Environmental Science & Policy, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 1-7.
    7. Stefan Kuhlmann & Arie Rip, 2018. "Next-Generation Innovation Policy and Grand Challenges," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 45(4), pages 448-454.
    8. Genus, Audley & Iskandarova, Marfuga, 2018. "Responsible innovation: its institutionalisation and a critique," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 1-9.
    9. Freeman, R. Edward, 1994. "The Politics of Stakeholder Theory: Some Future Directions1," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 4(4), pages 409-421, October.
    10. Scherer, Andreas Georg & Palazzo, Guido & Baumann, Dorothée, 2006. "Global Rules and Private Actors: Toward a New Role of the Transnational Corporation in Global Governance," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 16(4), pages 505-532, October.
    11. Niels Mejlgaard & Carter Bloch, 2012. "Science in Society in Europe," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 39(6), pages 695-700, December.
    12. Rob Lubberink & Vincent Blok & Johan Van Ophem & Onno Omta, 2017. "Lessons for Responsible Innovation in the Business Context: A Systematic Literature Review of Responsible, Social and Sustainable Innovation Practices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(5), pages 1-31, May.
    13. Ivan Ligardo-Herrera & Tomás Gómez-Navarro & Edurne A. Inigo & Vincent Blok, 2018. "Addressing Climate Change in Responsible Research and Innovation: Recommendations for Its Operationalization," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-20, June.
    14. Shortall, O.K. & Raman, Sujatha & Millar, Kate, 2015. "Are plants the new oil? Responsible innovation, biorefining and multipurpose agriculture," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 360-368.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Elin Merethe Oftedal & Lene Foss & Tatiana Iakovleva, 2019. "Responsible for Responsibility? A Study of Digital E-health Startups," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-21, September.
    2. Jining Zhou & Bo Zhang & Runhua Tan & Ming-Lang Tseng & Yaya Zhang, 2020. "Exploring the Systematic Attributes Influencing Gerontechnology Adoption for Elderly Users Using a Meta-Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-17, April.
    3. Xiaoyu Liu & Jahan Ara Peerally & Claudia De Fuentes & David Ince & Harrie Vredenburg, 2022. "Who Makes or Breaks Energy Policymaking in the Caribbean Small Island Jurisdictions? A Study of Stakeholders’ Perceptions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-19, February.
    4. Tjaša Štrukelj & Jelena Nikolić & Dejana Zlatanović & Simona Sternad Zabukovšek, 2020. "A Strategic Model for Sustainable Business Policy Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-28, January.
    5. Marija Mosurović Ružičić & Mirjana Miletić & Marina Dobrota, 2021. "Does a National Innovation System Encourage Sustainability? Lessons from the Construction Industry in Serbia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-19, March.
    6. Grigorescu Adriana & Maer Matei Monica Mihaela & Mocanu Cristina & Zamfir Ana-Maria, 2019. "Key drivers and skills need for innovative companies focused on sustainability," Proceedings of the International Conference on Business Excellence, Sciendo, vol. 13(1), pages 717-727, May.
    7. Tatiana Iakovleva & Elin Oftedal & John Bessant, 2021. "Changing Role of Users—Innovating Responsibly in Digital Health," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-17, February.
    8. Carla Gonzales-Gemio & Claudio Cruz-Cázares & Mary Jane Parmentier, 2020. "Responsible Innovation in SMEs: A Systematic Literature Review for a Conceptual Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-27, December.
    9. Tatiana Iakovleva & John Bessant & Elin Oftedal & Luciana Maines da Silva, 2021. "Innovating Responsibly—Challenges and Future Research Agendas," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-6, March.
    10. Razan Abdullah Al Rawaf & Abdulaziz Abdulmohsen Alfalih, 2023. "The Role of Governance in Achieving Sustainability in Family-Owned Business: Do Responsible Innovation and Entrepreneurial Culture Matter?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-23, March.
    11. Seunghwan Myeong & Syed Asad Abbas Bokhari, 2023. "Building Participative E-Governance in Smart Cities: Moderating Role of Institutional and Technological Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(20), pages 1-23, October.
    12. Milena Gojny-Zbierowska & Przemysław Zbierowski, 2021. "Improvisation as Responsible Innovation in Organizations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-20, February.
    13. Khalid Rasheed Memon & Say Keat Ooi & Heesup Han, 2024. "Responsible innovation and corporate sustainability performance: A structural equation modeling‐neural network approach," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(4), pages 2712-2730, May.
    14. Asef Karimi & Haniye Rezaei & Morteza Akbari & Pantea Foroudi, 2021. "The concept of innovation network: an application of the meta-synthesis approach," Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, Springer;UNESCO Chair in Entrepreneurship, vol. 11(1), pages 399-419, December.
    15. Beniamino Callegari & Olga Mikhailova, 2021. "RRI and Corporate Stakeholder Engagement: The Aquadvantage Salmon Case," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-18, February.
    16. Thammarat Koottatep & Krisakorn Sukavejworakit & Thanaphol Virasa, 2020. "Roadmap for Innovators in the Process of Innovation for Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-15, December.
    17. Sara H. Wilford, 2019. "Responsible Research and Innovation: Using the Requirements Tool for Stakeholder Engagement in Developing a Universal Design for Learning Guidelines for Practice," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-16, May.
    18. Hong Tian & Jiahui Tian, 2021. "The Mediating Role of Responsible Innovation in the Relationship between Stakeholder Pressure and Corporate Sustainability Performance in Times of Crisis: Evidence from Selected Regions in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(14), pages 1-17, July.
    19. Matteo Trane & Luisa Marelli & Alice Siragusa & Riccardo Pollo & Patrizia Lombardi, 2023. "Progress by Research to Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in the EU: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-37, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Alice Panciroli & Angela Santangelo & Simona Tondelli, 2020. "Mapping RRI Dimensions and Sustainability into Regional Development Policies and Urban Planning Instruments," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-31, July.
    2. Ivan Ligardo-Herrera & Tomás Gómez-Navarro & Edurne A. Inigo & Vincent Blok, 2018. "Addressing Climate Change in Responsible Research and Innovation: Recommendations for Its Operationalization," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-20, June.
    3. Genus, Audley & Iskandarova, Marfuga, 2018. "Responsible innovation: its institutionalisation and a critique," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 1-9.
    4. Thais Assis de Souza & Rodrigo Marçal Gandia & Bruna Habib Cavazza & André Grützmann & Isabelle Nicolaï, 2020. "A Conceptual Proposal for Responsible Innovation," Post-Print hal-03014720, HAL.
    5. Tatiana Iakovleva & Elin Oftedal & John Bessant, 2021. "Changing Role of Users—Innovating Responsibly in Digital Health," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-17, February.
    6. Jiqing Liu & Gui Zhang & Xiaojing Lv & Jiayu Li, 2022. "Discovering the Landscape and Evolution of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI): Science Mapping Based on Bibliometric Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-32, July.
    7. Carbajo, Ruth & Cabeza, Luisa F., 2019. "Sustainability and social justice dimension indicators for applied renewable energy research: A responsible approach proposal," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 252(C), pages 1-1.
    8. Tatiana Iakovleva & John Bessant & Elin Oftedal & Luciana Maines da Silva, 2021. "Innovating Responsibly—Challenges and Future Research Agendas," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-6, March.
    9. Wiarda, Martijn & van de Kaa, Geerten & Yaghmaei, Emad & Doorn, Neelke, 2021. "A comprehensive appraisal of responsible research and innovation: From roots to leaves," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    10. Wiarda, Martijn & Sobota, Vladimir C.M. & Janssen, Matthijs J. & van de Kaa, Geerten & Yaghmaei, Emad & Doorn, Neelke, 2023. "Public participation in mission-oriented innovation projects," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 191(C).
    11. Hong Tian & Jiahui Tian, 2021. "The Mediating Role of Responsible Innovation in the Relationship between Stakeholder Pressure and Corporate Sustainability Performance in Times of Crisis: Evidence from Selected Regions in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(14), pages 1-17, July.
    12. Christian Voegtlin & Andreas Georg Scherer & Günter K. Stahl & Olga Hawn, 2022. "Grand Societal Challenges and Responsible Innovation," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(1), pages 1-28, January.
    13. Čeičytė Jolita & Petraitė Monika, 2017. "Self-Organisation Perspective to Responsible Innovation in Industry," Management of Organizations: Systematic Research, Sciendo, vol. 78(1), pages 21-32, December.
    14. Tina C. Ambos & Katherine Tatarinov, 2022. "Building Responsible Innovation in International Organizations through Intrapreneurship," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(1), pages 92-125, January.
    15. Anja Salzmann & Frode Guribye & Astrid Gynnild, 2021. "Mobile Journalists as Traceable Data Objects: Surveillance Capitalism and Responsible Innovation in Mobile Journalism," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 9(2), pages 130-139.
    16. Reichelt, Nicole & Nettle, Ruth, 2023. "Practice insights for the responsible adoption of smart farming technologies using a participatory technology assessment approach: The case of virtual herding technology in Australia," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 206(C).
    17. Irene L. Bahena-Álvarez & Eulogio Cordón-Pozo & Alejandro Delgado-Cruz, 2019. "Social Entrepreneurship in the Conduct of Responsible Innovation: Analysis Cluster in Mexican SMEs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(13), pages 1-21, July.
    18. Agata Gurzawska & Markus Mäkinen & Philip Brey, 2017. "Implementation of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) Practices in Industry: Providing the Right Incentives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-26, September.
    19. Andrea Vargiu, 2014. "Indicators for the Evaluation of Public Engagement of Higher Education Institutions," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 5(3), pages 562-584, September.
    20. Jolita Ceicyte & Monika Petraite, 2018. "Networked Responsibility Approach for Responsible Innovation: Perspective of the Firm," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-15, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:6:p:1766-:d:216698. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.