Understanding Paradigm Change in Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy: Between Science Push and Policy Pull

Science, technology, and innovation (STI) policy experienced far-reaching changes with regard to both political aims and the underlying rationales. Drawing on the concept of policy paradigms, we analyse the factors that shaped the dynamics of STI policy since the first post-war decades in the OECD world. Next to changes in the context conditions, the chapter focuses primarily on endogenous phenomena related to changes of the conceptual understanding of knowledge generation and innovation, of the main STI policy objectives, and of preferred policy solutions. Of particular interest is the role of scientific expertise in these processes of policy change. The first of the three STI policy paradigms identified is characterised by its emphasis on addressing market failures in processes of knowledge generation. The second paradigm shares key objectives of the first, but is based on the systems of innovation heuristic, aiming to improve system performance. The third paradigm supplements the primarily economic rationales of the previous paradigms with the objective of addressing societal challenges. In view of the conclusion that scientific contributions and policy advice were less influential in the second paradigm shift than during the first, we develop suggestions for a future-oriented research agenda for STI policy research.