News – January 20, 2010

New Papers

B. Godin (2010), Innovation Without the Word: William F. Ogburn’s Contribution to Technological Innovation Studies, Working Paper no. 5, Project on the Intellectual History of Innovation, Montreal: INRS. 56 p.

Abstract
The theory of innovation and its historiography are dominated by economists and by the contribution of J. A. Schumpeter. This paper documents the contribution of a neglected but influential author, the American sociologist William F. Ogburn. Over a period of more than thirty years, Ogburn developed pioneering ideas on three dimensions of technological innovation: origins, diffusion, and effects. He also developed the first conceptual framework for innovation studies – based on the concept of cultural lags – which led to studying and forecasting the impacts of technological innovation on society. All in all, Ogburn has been as important to the sociology of technology as Robert K. Merton has been to the sociology of science and Schumpeter to the economics of technological innovation.

B. Godin (2010), National Innovation System: A Note on the Origins of a Concept, Working Paper, Project on the Intellectual History of Innovation, Montreal: INRS. 8 p.