Social systems evolving—reviewing Leydesdorff’s the knowledge-based economy

Wilfred Dolfsma

doi:10.1007/s00191-009-0150-z

Abstract

Is the biological metaphor the proper one for evolutionary economics to pur-sue, given that it leads one to incorporate more from biology as an academicdiscipline than would be called for? Is the economy, the subject of analysis foreconomists, not fundamentally different from a biological or a natural system?These are the topics of ongoing discussion within the ﬁeld of Evolutionary Eco-nomics that I will address only indirectly here, reviewing Loet Leydesdorff’s(2006a) recent book. They do linger in the background, however, needlessto say.Leydesdorff’s book offers signiﬁcant theoretical insights and counter-pointsto the strand in evolutionary economics that aims to stay close to Darwin’sthinking (Hodgson and Knudsen 2006; special issues of the Witt 2006,andthe Klaes 2004). Rather than addressing this body of literature head on,dismantling it ﬁrst before presenting his own views, Leydesdorff develops analternative perspective of how social systems evolve, largely without extensivereference to this literature. And as well he might, as there is a long history ofthought in the social sciences that he draws on besides the ﬁeld of evolutionaryeconomics.In many respects, this book is the culmination of thinking in systems’ theory,science studies, scientometrics and related ﬁelds. It is unfortunate that theselines of research have not reached evolutionary economics. In addition to a

Highlights

Are social systems different?For Loet Leydesdorff, the Knowledge-based Economy is not equated to that part of the economy involved with ICT or technology
Leydesdorff’s book offers significant theoretical insights and counter-points to the strand in evolutionary economics that aims to stay close to Darwin’s thinking (Hodgson and Knudsen 2006; special issues of the Witt 2006, and the Klaes 2004). Rather than addressing this body of literature head on, dismantling it first before presenting his own views, Leydesdorff develops an alternative perspective of how social systems evolve, largely without extensive reference to this literature. As well he might, as there is a long history of thought in the social sciences that he draws on besides the field of evolutionary economics
It is unfortunate that these lines of research have not reached evolutionary economics

Summary

Are social systems different?

For Loet Leydesdorff, the Knowledge-based Economy is not equated to that part of the economy involved with ICT or technology. While at the level of systems one may not speak of actors purposefully pursuing a goal, anticipation of future states of affairs emerging in the systems do help constitute stable meanings, communication and outcomes, retaining some elements and not others. In this respect, too, the selection mechanism is endogenized. This meets a fundamental critique leveled at evolutionary economics by Andersen (1994), not addressed till : variation and selection are not completely separate, and the selection environment is not undifferentiated. For instance, the question whether or not a country or a region is a stable innovation system may be investigated

Lock-in and break-out

Selection

So what?

Some final and some critical notes