Science and Technology Dynamics

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From a policy perspective a need has been felt to better understand the innovation process and to determine how, through policy measures, this process may be strengthened to provide impetus for sustained economic growth - arguably a major policy priority for nation-states around the globe. An outcome of these developments has been the emergence of government-sponsored projects to capture the impacts of technology and R&D on national economic performance. The fourth module of the ESST course examines the dynamics of science and technology from an Economics and policymaking perspective. Moving beyond the narrow and mechanistic confines of mainstream economics, the module draws on concepts from evolutionary and institutional economics to provide systemic perspectives on the role of technology in economic development. Module 4 provides the students with an understanding and appreciation of the innovation process as viewed from the evolutionary, institutional, and systems- based perspectives and how this understanding may be applied in critical examination of STS-related areas of interest.