Browsing by Author "Mafra, Rubem"

This thesis analyses the evolution of heterodox economic thought on innovation and policy directives. The literature review offers an overview of the progression over the 20th century on how innovation shapes economic long-term growth, by analysing the Schumpeterian definition of innovation and then the relationship between development waves and these innovations. In addition, the literature review will also provide an overview of the progression of public policy on innovation framework. The aim of this thesis is to critically analyse the theory and to understand its limitations, as most of the current literature builds on the existing knowledge without critically revisiting what has been published. The innovation theory gained a lot of prominence in the last century and by revisiting the previous developments, this thesis can contribute to the current literature by identifying gaps with potential for further developments, and hypothesising further research topics, to push the knowledge frontier. The results pinpoint gaps in the heterodox theory of innovation and offer potential suggestions of better directives for policy-making. Additionally, they are intended to provoke a broader discussion around the topic and promote improvements to innovation theory.