The triple helix perspective of innovation systems

Alongside the neo-institutional model of networked relations among universities, industries, and governments, the triple helix can be provided with a neo-evolutionary interpretation as three selection environments operating upon one another: markets, organisations and technological opportunities. How are technological innovation systems different from national ones? The three selection environments fulfil social functions: wealth creation, organisation control and organised knowledge production. The main carriers of this system – industry, government and academia – provide the variation both recursively and by interacting among them under the pressure of competition. Empirical case studies enable us to understand how these evolutionary mechanisms can be expected to operate in historical instances. The model is needed for distinguishing, for example, between trajectories and regimes.