Short answer
When designing new products or processes, consider how to bridge the gap between fundamental research and practical application, potentially by fostering closer collaboration or integrating diverse expertise within your own design and development teams.
- Field
- Innovation & Design
- Source
- Innovation Policy and the Economy (2019)
- Method
- Econometric analysis of historical data
- Evidence
- Moderate effect
A greater division of labor in the innovation process, where universities focus on research and corporations on development, can hinder the efficient translation of scientific knowledge into new products and services. This innovation & design research insight is drawn from a 2019 study published in Innovation Policy and the Economy. Using Econometric analysis of historical data, researchers explored how this design variable affects real-world outcomes. The key design takeaway: When designing new products or processes, consider how to bridge the gap between fundamental research and practical application, potentially by fostering closer collaboration or integrating diverse expertise within your own design and development teams.
Specialization in Innovation Slows Product Development
A greater division of labor in the innovation process, where universities focus on research and corporations on development, can hinder the efficient translation of scientific knowledge into new products and services.
Innovation Policy and the Economy · 2019
Key Findings
- 01There has been a significant division of labor between universities (research) and large corporations (development) in recent decades.
- 02Knowledge generated by universities is often not in a readily usable format for commercial development.
- 03Small firms and university technology transfer offices have not fully compensated for the decline in integrated, large-scale corporate research.
- 04This specialization has slowed the transformation of scientific knowledge into new products and processes, despite an increase in scientific output.
Application
Design takeaway
When designing new products or processes, consider how to bridge the gap between fundamental research and practical application, potentially by fostering closer collaboration or integrating diverse expertise within your own design and development teams.
How to apply
When initiating a new product development project, proactively identify potential knowledge gaps or translation challenges between the scientific basis of the technology and its practical implementation. Establish clear communication channels and collaborative frameworks with research partners or internal research departments.
Project actions
- 01Consider how your project's research phase connects to its development and prototyping phases.
- 02Think about who will use the knowledge you generate and how they will use it.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Longitudinal analysis providing historical context.
- +Focus on a significant economic phenomenon (productivity growth).
Limitations
This research is based on broad economic trends and may not perfectly reflect the specific dynamics of smaller, agile design projects.
Reliability & validity
The study's reliance on aggregated economic data and historical trends suggests potential issues with direct causal attribution, though the long-term perspective enhances reliability. Validity is supported by the focus on a core economic indicator (productivity).
Think critically
To what extent does the 'division of labor' in innovation, while potentially increasing efficiency in specialized tasks, inherently create systemic delays in bringing novel solutions to market?
Design Principles
"Integrate research and development functions to accelerate the translation of scientific discovery into market-ready innovations."
Understanding how the structure of innovation impacts the pace of technological advancement is crucial for organizations aiming to bring new solutions to market. This insight suggests that while specialization can increase scientific output, it may create bottlenecks in the practical application of that science.
What This Means for Your Design
Breaking down the innovation process too much, like having universities do all the science and companies do all the making, can actually slow down how fast we get new cool stuff.
How to use in your project
- 1.Reference this study when discussing the challenges of translating research findings into practical design solutions within your design project.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
Paragraph starter
The structure of innovation, particularly the division of labor between research and development, can significantly impact the pace of technological advancement. As observed in studies of the American innovation ecosystem, a pronounced separation between scientific research (often conducted by universities) and practical development (by corporations) can create bottlenecks, slowing the transformation of knowledge into new products and processes. This highlights the importance of integrated approaches in design projects to ensure efficient knowledge transfer and timely market introduction.
Source
Innovation Policy and the Economy
The Changing Structure of American Innovation: Some Cautionary Remarks for Economic Growth
journal · 2019
View sourceQuestions About This Research
- What does the research say about specialization in innovation slows product development?
- When designing new products or processes, consider how to bridge the gap between fundamental research and practical application, potentially by fostering closer collaboration or integrating diverse expertise within your own design and development teams. Evidence: Innovation Policy and the Economy (2019).
- Why does "Specialization in Innovation Slows Product Development" matter for design?
- Understanding how the structure of innovation impacts the pace of technological advancement is crucial for organizations aiming to bring new solutions to market. This insight suggests that while specialization can increase scientific output, it may create bottlenecks in the practical application of that science.
- How can designers apply this research?
- When designing new products or processes, consider how to bridge the gap between fundamental research and practical application, potentially by fostering closer collaboration or integrating diverse expertise within your own design and development teams.
- What were the main findings?
- There has been a significant division of labor between universities (research) and large corporations (development) in recent decades.. Knowledge generated by universities is often not in a readily usable format for commercial development.. Small firms and university technology transfer offices have not fully compensated for the decline in integrated, large-scale corporate research.. This specialization has slowed the transformation of scientific knowledge into new products and processes, despite an increase in scientific output.
- What research method was used?
- Econometric analysis of historical data.
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Moderate effect, based on a 2019 journal from Innovation Policy and the Economy.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- When initiating a new product development project, proactively identify potential knowledge gaps or translation challenges between the scientific basis of the technology and its practical implementation. Establish clear communication channels and collaborative frameworks with research partners or internal research departments.
- What are the limitations?
- The study focuses on the US context and may not be directly generalizable to all national innovation systems. The analysis relies on aggregated data, which may mask finer-grained dynamics within specific industries.