The regional dimension of knowledge transfers: a behavioral approach

Arbeitspapier

Innovations are inherently connected to knowledge transfers. The need of face-to-face contacts to transfer tacit knowledge is commonly argued to cause a regional dimension of innovative activities. The paper presents an alternative explanation based on a model of boundedly rational actors who search for knowledge. It is shown that a regional dimension exists in these processes that results from a regional bias in an actor's search activities. Social embeddedness, a shared regional identity and limited spatial mobility foster this bias. We argue that insights from research on these topics can help to define the geographic size of a region.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: Papers on Economics and Evolution ; No. 0612

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness ; Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives ; Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity ; Current Heterodox Approaches: Historical; Institutional; Evolutionary
• Subject: Regional Economics ; Innovation ; Knowledge Transfers ; Tacit Knowledge ; Bounded Rationality ; Wissenstransfer ; Regionalökonomik ; Raumwirtschaftstheorie ; Beschränkte Rationalität

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Broekel, Tom ; Binder, Martin
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Max Planck Institute of Economics
• (where): Jena
• (when): 2006

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/31802
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:43 AM CET