Should Attitudinal Views toward Innovation Development Play a Role in Policy in Peripheral EU Regions?: New Evidence from Vouchers Program in Northern Ireland

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Sean M. McDonald
Remi C. Claire
Alastair H. McPherson

Abstract

The impact and effectiveness of policies to support collaboration for Research & Development (R&D) and Innovation is critical to determining the success of regional economic development. (O’Kane, 2008) The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the level of success of the Innovation Vouchers Program operated by Invest Northern Ireland (Invest NI) from 2009 to 2013 and address if attitudinal views towards innovation development should play in a role in future policy design in peripheral EU regions. 

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Author Biographies

Sean M. McDonald, Bentley University

Associate Professor of Geography at Bentley University. Previously, he was an International Trade Specialist with the United States Department of Commerce and Director of the Consortium of American Business Programs in Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union. He was a Visiting Professor at Lancaster University, UK, and has guest lectured at numerous other institutions. McDonald is a founding member of Additional Research, and holds a doctorate in geography from Scotland’s Glasgow University.

Alastair H. McPherson, Bentley University

Alastair H. McPherson works with government bodies and private-sector partners to improve performance and build an evidence-base that informs strategic decision-making. His interests include economic appraisal and evaluation; impact assessment; and developing capacity on these topics. This work is applied to a range of public policy areas including international development, economic development and regeneration, innovation and commercialization, skills and labor issues, work organization, and international trade and investment.  McPherson is owner of Additional Research, Glasgow and a Senior Visiting Research Fellow at the Valente Center for Arts and Sciences at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts.