Influence of Shared Mental Models of R&D Teams in Transitioning Through the Technological Valley of Death of Innovation

The valley of death is a metaphor used to explain the gap between technological development and innovation. This phenomenon is explained by the occurrence of several barriers, including mental models, which refer to the way people represent in their mind aspects such as knowledge, information and beliefs that allow people to interact with the environment. One challenge in explaining the valley of death is the integration of this concept with shared mental models for its study. Considering the above, a conceptual model is proposed that seeks to explain the occurrence of the valley of death in terms of shared mental models, considering elements such as organisational routines and learning. Finally, a possible methodological route based on agent-based modelling (ABM) is proposed, given the characteristics of the valley of death, which is a complex, longitudinal, nonlinear phenomenon with multiple agents and transition processes.