Research on social innovation is generally conducted through case studies. This is explained by the unique character of innovations upon their emergence and by the fact that the concept of social innovation remains poorly codified. As a consequence, information on social innovation often remains isolated, restricting macro-sociological analysis of the social transformations that accompany these innovations, in addition to limiting the generalization of results. In order to fill this gap, the Centre de Recherche sur les Innovations Sociales (CRISES) began in fall 2011 to build a database on social innovation. As a statistical observatory of more than 300 case studies conducted in Quebec, this database will enable the longitudinal, sectoral and spatial analysis of social innovation in this given regional context. Moreover, the project of building the database itself also constitutes an innovation. This paper addresses the challenges facing this innovation at the theoretical, methodological and epistemological levels. [Authors’ abstract].
Bouchard, Marie J. and Trudelle, Catherine (2013) Exploring the conceptual universe of social innovation : a relational database for a better understanding of its effects on social transformation (Paper presented at the international conference Social Frontiers : The next edge of social innovation research, at GCU's London Campus on 14th and 15th November 2013).
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