Social innovations: highly reflexive and multi-referential phenomena of today's innovation society? A report on analytical concepts and social science initiative

Abstract

This report provides an overview on the growing topic of social innovations. It summarises the main arguments and traces their discussion in the social sciences. In a first step, the paper focuses on the conceptual distinctions between social and technical innovations on the one hand, and between social innovation and social change on the other. From this point of departure, the second and central part of the paper addresses questions concerning the reflexive nature of social innovations as well as the referential structures used for evaluating social innovations in contemporary ‘innovation societies’. Based on this framework, the third and last part of the paper provides a brief overview of current social innovation initiatives and institutions at the EU level. The aim is to situate the concept of social innovations in a broader discussion of social and technical change, reflexive modernisation and emerging innovation societies today.