Event Structure Analysis as a Tool for Investigating Sustainability in Innovation Ecosystems

Abstract

Agile innovation ecosystems are of great importance. To improve our understanding of the emergence, evolution and sustainability of innovation ecosystems there is a need for relational analysis methods. This article aligns with the call for innovation ecosystems to learn from other established research fields and move past mostly descriptive research. This is done through aligning ecosystems research with theories and methods that deal directly with how and why things change over time. Event-based research methods in which event sequences are explained in terms of causal mechanisms are a possible way forward. We use the case history of an mHealth application to show how one such method, Event Structure Analysis, can be used for investigating ecosystem dynamics. Understanding historical actor interactions and being able to analyse them is one way that innovation ecosystems can be proactively managed and thus made sustainable.