CO-CREATION NETWORKS AS ENABLERS OF INNOVATION: Uncovering the Interplay Between Network Structure and Collaboration Process

Co-creation networks involve the collaboration between public and private actors to deliver innovative solutions. They are an important governance tool to cope with complex issues that governments cannot solve alone, such as climate change, the Covid-19 pandemic or poverty. However, while academics and practitioners treat cocreation as a panacea, there are still gaps in understanding cocreation networks and, more specifically, how they can achieve innovative solutions. This project will contribute to filling these gaps by asking under which conditions co-creation networks lead to innovation, with a focus on network structures and collaboration processes. To address this research question, the project will combine insights from network literature and co-creation studies to foster theoretical thinking. Next, it will examine six Living Labs as they are multi-actor networks that aim to foster innovation through co-creation in real-life settings. The research project will follow a three-phase empirical study combining (1) Social Network Analysis, (2) in-depth comparative case studies, and (3) Qualitative Comparative Analysis. Through this multi-method approach, this project will provide a detailed understanding of the various conditions related to co-creation networks and will determine how these conditions interact to foster innovation. By bringing together cocreation and network research, this project will move forward their theoretical and empirical agenda.