イノベーションの発生源研究の再検討

　本論文は，イノベーションの発生源に関する先行研究を振り返り，「いつ」「どこで」「誰によって」イノベーションが生み出されるのかを理論的に考察することを目的とする。考察の結果，「B to B」の文脈においては，イノベーションの発生源が企業ユーザーへ移行するメカニズムとして，取引コスト理論，期待利益仮説，情報粘着性の仮説，企業内部の独自能力（吸収能力），および外部の産業構造（製品アーキテクチャ・エコシステム）といった複数の要素からなる経済的合理性の観点から分析されていることが明らかになった。一方，「B to C」の文脈では，エンドユーザーがイノベーションに向かう動機として，「ニッチ市場に対するメーカーの消極的な対応」「創造的活動の楽しさ」「ユーザーコミュニティとの繋がり」「知識・スキルの向上」など多種多様な要素が存在し，中でも創造的活動の楽しさが根源的な動機づけの1つであると確認された。一方で，イノベーターを突き動かす心理的要因をブラックボックス化したまま放置することは，単なる知的好奇心の問題に留まらず，社会科学としての経営学にとっても重要な問題であると考えられる。今後のイノベーションの発生源研究においては，起業家をはじめとするイノベーター個人の心理的側面にいかに目を向け，創造的活動におけるポジティブな感情が働くメカニズムをイノベーションの発生メカニズムにいかに位置づけるか，その研究アプローチの提示が求められる。

　This study aims to theoretically examine prior research on the locus of innovation, with a particular focus on clarifying "when," "where," and "by whom" innovation is generated. The analysis reveals that in the context of B to B (Industrial Goods) , the shift of innovation sources toward enterprise users has been explained from the perspective of economic rationality, incorporating multiple factors such as transaction cost, expected innovation rents, sticky information, internal capabilities (Absorptive Capacity) , and external industrial structures (Product Architecture, Ecosystem) . In contrast, in the B to C context (Consumer Goods) , end users pursue innovation for a wide variety of reasons, including manufacturers' lack of responsiveness to niche markets, the enjoyment of creative activity, connection with user communities, and personal growth. Among these, the enjoyment derived from creative activity has deemed to be identified as one of the most fundamental motivational factors. However, the methodological articulation of such psychological factors is not enough. Leaving the psychological drivers behind innovation as a black box is not merely a matter of academic curiosity but presents a significant challenge for management studies as a social science. This is because management is always purposive attempts for directing and controlling the process of value creation and sometimes psychological exaltation, which may be recently called 'flow' experience, may conflict such attempts. In future research on the locus of innovation, it is essential to focus on these psychological aspects of individual innovator and to develop new research approaches. First, it has a room for further elucidation of the mechanisms by which positive emotions contribute to innovation, but this challenge is hardly easy to overcome. Since creativity is essentially a construct of the individual level and innovation is not, the argument of balancing the entrepreneurial motivational drivers and the managerial direction and control of creative destruction needs to be mediated by meso-level constructs. In our prospect, such concepts as underdeveloped ecosystem on the supply side and immature connoisseur on the side of consumers may be promising. Another concern is the generally limited sample size of creative minds. The existent research tactics that have been found in our neighboring disciplines sharing the same problem as ours, either qualitative or quantitative, may provide us with methodical benchmarks.

論説 (Articles)