A Model for social innovation evaluation in Iran

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of management, University of Tehran, Iran

2 Department of Business Management, Faculty of Management, University of Tehran, Visiting Professor , York University ،Toronto ,Canada

3 Department of Business Management, Faculty of Management, University of Tehran

Abstract

Objective: In recent years, social innovation has been one of the most appealing subjects in management Literature. Social innovation has begun to pick up steam. The need for innovations aiming to solve wicked social problems under financial hardships and pandemics has modulated the shape of innovation initiatives. The call for a sustained impact with enduring effects on society has prompted international organizations and several scholars to conduct research and explore best practices in the impact assessment of social innovation. Hence, in the current research, we aim to provide a model for measuring social innovation regarding its characteristics and affecting factors in Iran.
Method: We thoroughly reviewed the literature to decipher the impact evaluation of social innovation and acquire the theoretical sensitivity for the grounded theory. Next, purposive sampling was applied to represent preeminent academics and professionals in social innovation. Subsequently, semi-structured interviews were carried out with the participants, casting light on their insights and comprehension of the phenomena. All interviews were documented and uploaded to the MAXQDA2022 software. After data collection, Strauss’s and Corbin’s versions of the grounded theory was employed to provide the model for measuring social innovation in Iran. In the coding step, we utilized open, axial, and selective coding, respectively, to classify codes into sub-categories and categories, all of which resulted in the impact evaluation of the social innovation theoretical concept.
Results: Findings of the in-depth and semi-structured interviews with 14 experts yielded a model with 22 factors. In different steps of the impact evaluation process, the recurring theme of the interviews was a sense among interviewees requiring the co-creation with all beneficiaries, in particular, the society where the social innovation is implemented. Also, it is imperative to acquire robust impact evaluation metrics and methods for the interviewees' arguments. These two phenomena are the “core category” of the current research. Moreover, categories of the open coding phase were classified as the axial coding phase under the causal conditions, context, intervening conditions, strategies, and consequences.
Conclusion: Various factors affecting co-creation formation and the evolution of the measurement process of social innovation effectiveness have been represented. It was emphasized that the measurement of social innovation impact should be performed based on the real impact. Different parts of the model and the impact measurement in different social innovation stages (Figures 1 and 2) suggest that before commencing the work, a specific definition for social innovation and its activities should be determined. Also, it should be checked whether the activity has an opinion on the social innovation definition or not. As aforementioned, in the evaluation process, independent evaluators are of paramount importance to evaluate the work.

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References

 
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