Coupling or lock-in? Co-evolution of cultural embeddness and cluster innovation-exploratory case study of Shaoxing textile cluster

Abstract

Based on an exploratory case study of the development of Shaoxing textile cluster for more than 30 years, through the cross-level and multi-dimensional deconstruction of cultural embeddednesss(CE), this article dynamically analyzes the co-evolution relationship and results of its effect on the innovation capabilities of the cluster. The case study results show that CE affects the network structure and network behavior of cluster firms, which leads to the differences of innovation capabilities between cluster firms and the overall clusters. There exists a co-evolution relationship between CE and cluster innovation capabilities, and the result will lead to co-evolution coupling or lock-in. Co-evolution coupling appears in the early stage of cluster development; while co-evolution lock-in appears in the later stage of cluster development. So the embeddedness of same regional cultures may have completely different roles at different stages of cluster development. The root cause is that the network structure and behavior influenced by CE cannot dynamically match the demands for innovation in different stages of cluster's development, and the path dependence of CE evolution leads to change difficultly.