No. 4 (2022): Critical perspectives in social innovation, social enterprise and/or the social solidarity economy

cover imagem of the fourth issue

Guest Editors

Michael Bull, Manchester Metropolitan University

Tim Curtis, University of Northampton

Vicky Nowak, Manchester Metropolitan University

 

Presentation

This Thematic Issue seeks to explore critical perspectives of an international nature on social innovation (SI), social enterprise (SE) and/or social solidarity economy (SSE). The aim is to examine the grand narrative, explore the ontological assumptions of the field, challenge the normative and present alternatives that draw attention to political economy, critical theory and critical management studies.

Critical perspectives emerged in social innovation (SI) literature as a concerted effort sometime in 2008. A few voices sounded from the edges of the field much earlier. Ash Amin, Professor of Geography at Durham University, inspected the new favourite of public policy way back in 2002, discarded it as a “a poor substitute for a welfare state” and never returned to the subject. There were heated debates that challenged the grand narrative of SI at the International Social Innovation Research Conferences (ISIRC) (once called the Social Enterprise Research Conference before becoming ISIRC with the involvement of the social innovation theme from Skoll Centre). The Voluntary Sector Studies Network (VSSN) conferences picked away at the promise of unlimited performance and achievement of the upstart SE in a mature voluntary and charity network (Aiken, 2002, 2006, 2007; Grenier, 2009; Pharaoh, Scott & Fisher, 2004). Still, on the whole, the literature in the last twenty years has been overwhelmingly interested in promoting social enterprise (SE) and SI as (a) an inherently good thing, (b) a solution to all problems and (c) a politically neutral complement to neo-liberal economics globally.

Published: 2023-05-18

Full Issue

Editorial

Articles

  • The rising tide of criticality in social entrepreneurship and social innovation

    Timothy Curtis, Michael Bull, Vicky Nowak
    8-34
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.5380/nocsi.v0i4.91112
  • Paradoxes of Transformative Social Innovation: From Critical Awareness towards Strategies of Inquiry

    Bonno Pel, Julia M. Wittmayer, Flor Avelino, Tom Bauler
    35-62
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.5380/nocsi.v0i4.91113
  • Everything and nothing: A critical review of the “social” in Innovation and Entrepreneurship studies

    Stefania Sardo, Beniamino Callegari, Bisrat A. Misganaw
    63-88
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.5380/nocsi.v0i4.91114
  • Beyond bricolage: social innovation as systematic, consistent and repeatable process

    Timothy Curtis
    89-117
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.5380/nocsi.v0i4.91115
  • A vicious cycle of superficial conceptualization: Deconstructing nature in social innovation (policy) discourse

    Hande Sinem Ergun, Seray Begüm Samur-Teraman
    118-142
    DOI: https://doi.org/10.5380/nocsi.v0i4.91116