Christopher Freeman
Encyclopedia
Christopher Freeman was an English
economist
, the founder and first director of Science and Technology Policy Research at the University of Sussex
, and one of the most eminent modern Kondratiev wave
and business cycle
theorists. Freeman contributed substantially to the revival of the neo-Schumpeterian
tradition focussing on the crucial role of innovation for economic development and of scientific and technological activities for well-being.
at the University of Sussex, England. He was the founder and the first Director, from 1966 to 1982 of SPRU, the Science Policy Research Unit of the University of Sussex and RM Phillips Professor of Science Policy. His fields of specialization were technical change in economic theory, science and technology indicators, the diffusion of generic technologies and their future implications, structural change in the world economy, and the "catch-up" efforts of East Asian and Latin American countries.
Besides his intellectual contributions in the economics of innovation and systems of innovation, Christopher Freeman was 'an academic entrepreneur'. Among the innovations for which he was responsible was 'The Frascati Manual', and the subsequent stream of work science and technology indicators at OECD and around the world. Secondly, he set up, shaped and for many years directed the Science Policy Research Unit, SPRU, which during the 1970s and '80s was the leading institution in the field. Thirdly, with colleagues at SPRU and in Germany, he founded and edited for over 30 years the journal 'Research Policy', establishing it as the leading journal in the field.
He introduced the concept of National System of Innovation with B.-Å. Lundvall and Richard R. Nelson
.
He mentored several generations of economists and social scientists working on technical change, innovation and the knowledge society, among them, Keith Pavitt
, Luc Soete
, Carlota Perez
, Mary Kaldor
, B.-Å. Lundvall, Daniele Archibugi
, Giovanni Dosi
and Jan Fagerberg
. His intellectual legacy has extended to almost every continent through SPRU graduate, some of whom have applied his thinking to the role of innovation in develop in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Programs that have their origins in his work can be traced at leading public policy institutions such as the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
at Harvard Kennedy School.
, Sweden
; Sussex
, Middlesex
, Birmingham
, and Brighton
. He received the 1987 Bernal Prize, the 1988 Schumpeter Prize, the 1993 Prix International du Futuroscope, and the 2001 World Technology Award
for Policy. The Freeman Centre building in Brighton
, home to CENTRIM
and SPRU, is named after him.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
economist
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
, the founder and first director of Science and Technology Policy Research at the University of Sussex
University of Sussex
The University of Sussex is an English public research university situated next to the East Sussex village of Falmer, within the city of Brighton and Hove. The University received its Royal Charter in August 1961....
, and one of the most eminent modern Kondratiev wave
Kondratiev wave
Kondratiev waves are described as sinusoidal-like cycles in the modern capitalist world economy...
and business cycle
Business cycle
The term business cycle refers to economy-wide fluctuations in production or economic activity over several months or years...
theorists. Freeman contributed substantially to the revival of the neo-Schumpeterian
Joseph Schumpeter
Joseph Alois Schumpeter was an Austrian-Hungarian-American economist and political scientist. He popularized the term "creative destruction" in economics.-Life:...
tradition focussing on the crucial role of innovation for economic development and of scientific and technological activities for well-being.
Academic activity
Freeman was Professor emeritus of Science PolicyScience policy
Science policy is an area of public policy concerned with the policies that affect the conduct of the science and research enterprise, including the funding of science, often in pursuance of other national policy goals such as technological innovation to promote commercial product development,...
at the University of Sussex, England. He was the founder and the first Director, from 1966 to 1982 of SPRU, the Science Policy Research Unit of the University of Sussex and RM Phillips Professor of Science Policy. His fields of specialization were technical change in economic theory, science and technology indicators, the diffusion of generic technologies and their future implications, structural change in the world economy, and the "catch-up" efforts of East Asian and Latin American countries.
Besides his intellectual contributions in the economics of innovation and systems of innovation, Christopher Freeman was 'an academic entrepreneur'. Among the innovations for which he was responsible was 'The Frascati Manual', and the subsequent stream of work science and technology indicators at OECD and around the world. Secondly, he set up, shaped and for many years directed the Science Policy Research Unit, SPRU, which during the 1970s and '80s was the leading institution in the field. Thirdly, with colleagues at SPRU and in Germany, he founded and edited for over 30 years the journal 'Research Policy', establishing it as the leading journal in the field.
He introduced the concept of National System of Innovation with B.-Å. Lundvall and Richard R. Nelson
Richard R. Nelson (economist)
Richard R. Nelson is an American professor of economics at Columbia University. He is one of the leading figures in the revival of evolutionary economics thanks to his seminal book An Evolutionary Theory of Economic Change written jointly with Sidney G. Winter...
.
He mentored several generations of economists and social scientists working on technical change, innovation and the knowledge society, among them, Keith Pavitt
Keith Pavitt
Keith Pavitt was an English scholar in the field of Science and Technology Policy...
, Luc Soete
Luc Soete
Luc Soete is a Belgian economist, Rector Magnificus Professor of International Economic Relations at the School of Business and Economics, Maastricht University and director of UNU-MERIT, a joint research institute of the United Nations University and Maastricht University...
, Carlota Perez
Carlota Perez
Carlota Perez is a Venezuelan scholar and expert on technology and socio-economic development most famous for her concept of Techno-Economic Paradigm Shifts and her theory of great surges, a further development of the Kondratieff waves.-Career:...
, Mary Kaldor
Mary Kaldor
Mary Kaldor is a British academic, currently Professor of Global Governance at the London School of Economics, where she is also the Director of its Centre for the Study of Global Governance. She has been a key figure in the development of cosmopolitan democracy...
, B.-Å. Lundvall, Daniele Archibugi
Daniele Archibugi
Daniele Archibugi is an Italian economic and political theorist. He works on the economics and policy of innovation and technological change, on the political theory of international relations and on political and technological globalisation....
, Giovanni Dosi
Giovanni Dosi
Giovanni Dosi is Professor at the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa , where he also coordinates the International Doctoral Program in Economics and leads the Laboratory of Economics and Management...
and Jan Fagerberg
Jan Fagerberg
Jan Fagerberg is professor at the University of Oslo, Norway.He is, or has been, affiliated with many institutions including: the Centre for Technology, Innovation and Culture , the Centre for Innovation, Research and Competence in the Learning Economy ; the Norwegian Ministry of Finance, the...
. His intellectual legacy has extended to almost every continent through SPRU graduate, some of whom have applied his thinking to the role of innovation in develop in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Programs that have their origins in his work can be traced at leading public policy institutions such as the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
The Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs is a permanent research center located within the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. The center's current director is political scientist Graham T. Allison....
at Harvard Kennedy School.
Awards and honors
Freeman held several honorary doctorates including those from the Universities of LinköpingLinköping University
Linköping University is a state university in Linköping, Sweden. Linköping University was granted full university status in 1975 and is now one of Sweden's larger academic institutions. Education, research and PhD training are the mission of four faculties: Arts and Sciences, Educational...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
; Sussex
University of Sussex
The University of Sussex is an English public research university situated next to the East Sussex village of Falmer, within the city of Brighton and Hove. The University received its Royal Charter in August 1961....
, Middlesex
Middlesex University
Middlesex University is a university in north London, England. It is located in the historic county boundaries of Middlesex from which it takes its name. It is one of the post-1992 universities and is a member of Million+ working group...
, Birmingham
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
, and Brighton
University of Brighton
The University of Brighton is an English university of the United Kingdom, with a community of over 23,000 students and 2,600 staff based on campuses in Brighton, Eastbourne and Hastings. It has one of the best teaching quality ratings in the UK and a strong research record, factors which...
. He received the 1987 Bernal Prize, the 1988 Schumpeter Prize, the 1993 Prix International du Futuroscope, and the 2001 World Technology Award
World Technology Award
The World Technology Awards are presented annually by The World Technology Network at its World Technology Summit to individuals and corporations achieving significant, lasting progress in categories pertaining to science, technology, the arts, and design...
for Policy. The Freeman Centre building in Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
, home to CENTRIM
CENTRIM
The Centre for Research in Innovation Management , at University of Brighton, is a multidisciplinary research group that originated in the 1980s....
and SPRU, is named after him.
Publications
- Systems of Innovation: Selected Essays in Evolutionary Economics, Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd, 2008.
- As Time Goes By: From the Industrial Revolutions to the Information Revolution (co-author with Francisco Louça), Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2001.
- The Economics of Industrial Innovation, 3rd edn. (co-author with Luc SoeteLuc SoeteLuc Soete is a Belgian economist, Rector Magnificus Professor of International Economic Relations at the School of Business and Economics, Maastricht University and director of UNU-MERIT, a joint research institute of the United Nations University and Maastricht University...
), Pinter, London, 1997. - Work for All or Mass Unemployment?: Computerised Technical Change in the Twenty-First Century, (co-author with Luc SoeteLuc SoeteLuc Soete is a Belgian economist, Rector Magnificus Professor of International Economic Relations at the School of Business and Economics, Maastricht University and director of UNU-MERIT, a joint research institute of the United Nations University and Maastricht University...
), Pinter Pub Ltd, 1994. - The Economics of Hope: Essays on Technical Change, Economic Growth, and the Environment, Pinter Pub Ltd, 1992.
- Technology Policy and Economic Performance: Lessons from Japan, Pinter Pub Ltd, 1987.
- Unemployment and Technical Innovation: A Study of Long Waves and Economic Development, (co-author with John Clark and Luc SoeteLuc SoeteLuc Soete is a Belgian economist, Rector Magnificus Professor of International Economic Relations at the School of Business and Economics, Maastricht University and director of UNU-MERIT, a joint research institute of the United Nations University and Maastricht University...
), Greenwood Press, 1982.
External links
- 'Bernal and the Social Function of Science' Freeview video by Chris Freeman and the Vega Science Trust
- 'Remembering Chris Freeman'