Abstract
The interactions between the higher education sector and society and industry have been attracting increased attention in terms of ways to develop social innovation solutions to societal problems. Despite calls from politicians and the existence of some guidelines, we know little about how higher education could incorporate social innovation activities into its structure and missions. This study examines some practice experiences in two southern European public universities in Portugal and Spain. We show that the third mission of universities, which includes social innovation, is both linked to the first two missions of teaching and research, depending on the university’s historical and social context. The high dependence of higher education institutions on economic returns increases the importance of political action to drive the development of social innovation activities. This conditioning factor seems to be intrinsic to some of the barriers that have been identified, such as lack of legitimization and recognition of social innovation practices at the formal governmental level.
Highlights
In recent years, policymakers, academic managers and researchers have shown increased interest in the interactions between Higher Education (HE) and society and industry or the third mission of universities [1]
The present study focuses on Social Innovation (SI) in relation to HigherEducation Institutions (HEIs) and considers its organizational dimensions [13] based on the study of two southern European public universities in Portugal and Spain
This study examines the status of SI in HEIs using the organizational dimensions and the model proposed by Villa, Arnau, and Cabezas et al [13]
Summary
Policymakers, academic managers and researchers have shown increased interest in the interactions between Higher Education (HE) and society and industry or the third mission of universities [1]. The RUSI model includes six dimensions related to the areas of teaching, research, outreach and management These dimensions are: (i) curriculum and pedagogy—which integrates a service-learning approach committed to improving quality of life for diverse social groups; (ii) organization—which refers to the institution’s management in terms of mission, vision, policy, strategic planning, organizational structure, processes and impact on SI actions; (iii) research, development and innovation—which includes the contribution made by R&D to SI; (iv) relationship to the context—which includes the links established by the university with societal institutions and communities; (v) environment—in terms of sustainable development through education and management policies; and (vi) internationalization—which includes integration of an international and intercultural dimension in the university’s missions, practices, development plans, curricula and policies. HE regulatory models in each country? (iv) How could public policy at the regional, national and European levels promote SI?
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