INVESTIGATING THE INNOVATION IMPACTS OF USER-CENTRED AND PARTICIPATORY STRATEGIES ADOPTED BY EUROPEAN LIVING LABS

Abstract

The advantages of innovation strategies that are based on collaboration with users have been demonstrated by several studies, which have highlighted emerging shifts from a user-centred approach (in which the user is a subject) to a participatory one (in which the user is a partner). The Living Lab methodology, which is a design research methodology aimed at co-creating innovation through the involvement of aware users in a real-life setting, can provide new perspectives in the passage from user-centred to participatory design. In this paper, answers received by 92 Living Labs belonging to the European Network of Living Labs are used to (i) investigate the strategies adopted by Living Labs to involve users in their innovation processes and (ii) analyse the relationships between strategies and achieved innovation performance outcomes. The user-centred strategy positively impacts all innovation performance outcomes (e.g., time, cost, quality and go to market), but only time performance shows a significant difference between non-adopters and adopters. Observing user behaviors, capturing user insights and receiving user feedback positively impact the efficiency of innovation projects and allow them to be concluded in a timely manner. The participatory strategy shows that adopters are characterised by a significantly higher percentage of projects that are able to reach the market by moving from the research stage to the innovation stage. Practices such as co-design, collaboration through digital platforms and development of experience prototypes allow for the achievement of better results in terms of quality and, consequently, marketability of the project outcome, but reduce the efficiency of the innovation project in terms of time and cost.