Table 3.
Functions of the technological innovation system.
| No. | Name | Description | Associated event types |
|---|---|---|---|
| F1 | Knowledge development and diffusion | The depth and breadth of the research and practice-based knowledge, and how actors develop, diffuse, and combine knowledge in the system. | Academic research, consortia, alliances, workshops, technology literacy of entrepreneurs |
| F2 | Influence on the direction of search | The extent to which actors are induced to enter the TIS by directing their research and investments in this technology. This function includes actors’ visions, expectations, and beliefs about growth potential (also due to TIS in other countries), changes in the TIS landscape as well as incentives and disincentives to participate. | Vision, promises, expectations, technological competition, beliefs in growth, policy targets |
| F3 | Entrepreneurial experimentation | Knowledge development of a more tacit, explorative, and/or applied nature. How new knowledge is turned into concrete entrepreneurial activities (experiments) to generate, discover, or create new commercial opportunities. | Demonstration or commercial projects |
| F4 | Market formation | Articulation of demand and market development in terms of demonstration projects, nursing markets (or niche markets), bridging markets and, eventually, mass markets (large-scale diffusion). | Expectation, areas of application generating common interest, market regulations |
| F5 | Legitimation | The socio-political process of legitimacy formation through actions by various organizations and individuals. Central features are the formation of expectations and visions as well as regulative alignment, including issues such as market regulations, tax policies, or the direction of science and technology policy. | Mental frames, lobbying, advocacy coalitions |
| F6 | Resource mobilization | The extent to which the TIS is able to mobilize human and financial capital as well as complementary assets. | Subsidies, investments |
| F7 | Development of positive externalities | The collective dimension of the innovation and diffusion process, i.e. how investments by one firm may provide free-rider benefits for other firms. It also an indicator for overall dynamics of the system since externalities magnify the strength of all the other functions. | Interest of new actors in joining TIS, quality of the other functions |
Sources: based on Bergek et al. (2008a) and Jacobsson and Bergek (2011).