Edward Elgar Publishing Knowledge, Innovation and Economy: An Evolutionary Exploration

In Knowledge, Innovation and Economy, Witold Kwasnicki examines industrial dynamics from an evolutionary perspective, applying a biological model to the analysis of economic problems. Focusing on issues of methodology, knowledge development, and cultural and social evolution, the first part of the book develops parallels, similarities and discrepancies between knowledge development and biological evolution. An evolutionary model of industrial development, presented in the second part of the book, incorporates both the industrial and innovation processes. The author compares and contrasts this model's behaviour with that of well-known, classical models of development. Contemporary economic problems relating to cumulative causation and path dependency are discussed in the final chapter. Knowledge, Innovation and Economy provides new insights into industrial and economic development which will be welcomed by economists concerned with industrial processes and organization, the innovation process and technological change. Review 'This book presents an excellent evolutionary analysis of core constructs of industrial economics using a simulation model targeted primarily on pricing strategy and product competition. . . . this is a solid contribution to the stream of work focused on the complexity of industry growth processes. . . . the work deserves attention from those using simulation models of industry development and those who are interested in developing the product/demand side of evolutionary theory.' About the Author Witold Kwasnicki, Institute of Economic Sciences, Wroclaw University, Poland