Foresight and STI Governance: Innovative Development Trends — A View from Both Inside and Outside
The latest issue of Foresight and STI Governance (2015, Vol. 9, No. 3) covers the effect of the external environment on entrepreneurial orientation, trends in mobile banking, nanotechnology patent analysis in Russia and the consequences of underestimating emerging technologies based on the South African experience.
Researchers traditionally highlight three dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) — innovativeness, pro-activeness, and readiness to take risks. Galina Shirokova, Karina Bogatyreva and Tatiana Beliaeva assess the effects of EO on firm performance in the Russian market in their article ‘Entrepreneurial Orientation of Russian Firms: The Role of External Environment’. The researchers found that emerging markets — as illustrated by Russia — are characterized by a two-dimensional EO structure: innovativeness and pro-activeness are perceived as a single dimension, while readiness to take risks is a separate component. Moreover, a positive relationship between the united dimension of entrepreneurial orientation — innovativeness and pro-activeness – and firm performance is manifested only in a dynamic or hostile external environment. This EO structure differs from the traditional three-dimensional conceptualization of entrepreneurial orientation that is typical for Western countries.
Mobile banking is currently one of the most dynamic and rapidly growing types of distance banking services. Nevertheless, in Russia the popularity of mobile banking applications is lower than the popularity of other banking services. Veronika Belousova and Nikolay Chichkanov analyse foreign surveys on incentives for mobile banking use in their article ‘Mobile Banking in Russia: User Intention towards Adoption’. Using the most widespread theories about technology acceptance and innovation diffusion, the authors verify that the key incentives for using mobile banking are its perceived usefulness and the perceived effort in using it.
Experts from the Skolkovo Fund for Infrastructure and Educational Programmes analysed nanotechnology patent activity within the Russian Federation and globally. In the paper ‘Patent Landscape for Nanotechnology’, Alexey Streletsky, Vladimir Zabavnikov, Emil Aslanov and Dmitry Kotlov suggest a new methodological approach that is posited to search for nanotechnology solutions using key words and relevant interdisciplinary terms. The results helped the researchers to build a patent map of nanotechnology for different fields (e.g., medicine, optoelectronics, metallurgy and others).
In the paper ‘Foresight for Science and Technology Priority Setting in Korea’, Moonjung Choi and Han-Lim Choi analyze the process of selecting national priorities and shaping long-term strategy for research and technological development on the basis of foresight. Using a series of studies, the authors identified the potential effects of perspective developments for society.
South African experts Anastassios Pouris and Portia Raphasha presented their general analysis of national foresight practice in the paper ‘Priorities Setting with Foresight in South Africa’. The authors concluded that in the past South African stakeholders failed to recognize the importance of emerging technologies such as nanotechnology and micro-production, as well as simulation technologies, as cost-effective components of new product and process development. These results appear to have permeated through STI policy and, as a result, the country appears to be lagging in terms of research in emerging technologies. However, recent results indicate that the country is integrating into the global economy, as national priorities are converging with priorities elsewhere.
The latest issues of Foresight Russia can be found in the book store BookVyshka (20 Myasnitskaya Ulitsa) in Moscow and in the store ‘Piotrovsky’ (51A Lunacharskogo Ulitsa) in Perm. Printed and E-versions of the journal are also available via subscription.
Editorial Board of Foresight Russia