No 2024/3 Rules of attraction

Networks of innovation policy makers in the EU

Abstract

Policy networks are an important source of information for policy making. Yet, we have only a limited understanding of how policy networks are structured among innovation policy makers and which factors shape their structure. This paper studies how proximities can explain what drives the connections in policy networks. More specifically, we look at innovation policy networks between EU member states. We use social network analysis based on our own data to map the networks of the 28 EU innovation policy directors, consisting of 756 potential connections, and study the proximities shaping these networks. Geographical and cultural proximity turn out to be strong predictors for symmetric and asymmetric ties, but we do not find a relationship between policy proximity (in terms of similarities in business environment regulations and innovation policy) and policy network formation between countries.