دانلود رایگان مقاله انگلیسی به سمت شهر هوشمند و فراتر از آن؟ توسعه نوع شناسی از نوآوری شهری هوشمند - الزویر 2018

ABSTRACT

The smart city is an increasingly popular topic in urban development, arousing both excitement and skepticism. However, despite increasing enthusiasm regarding the smartness of cities, the concept is still regarded as somewhat evasive. Encouraged by the multifaceted character of the concept, this article examines how we can categorize the different dimensions often included in the smart city concept, and how these dimensions are coupled to innovation. Furthermore, the article examines the implications of the different understandings of the smart city concept for cities' abilities to be innovative. Building on existing scholarly contributions on the smartness of cities and innovation literature, the article develops a typology of smart city initiatives based on the extent and types of innovations they involve. The typology is structured as a smart city continuum, comprising four dimensions of innovation: (1) technological, (2) organizational, (3) collaborative, (4) experimental. The smart city continuum is then utilized to analyze empirical data from a Norwegian urban development project triggered by a critical juncture. The empirical data shows that the case holds elements of different dimensions of the continuum, supporting the need for a typology of smart cities as multifaceted urban innovation. The continuum can be used as an analytical model for different types of smart city initiatives, and thus shed light on what types of innovation are central in the smart city. Consequently, the article offers useful insights for both practitioners and scholars interested in smart city initiatives.

5. Discussion and conclusions

This paper has examined how we can categorize the different dimensions often included in the smart city concept. By drawing on innovation theory, I have developed a typology of smart city initiatives based on the extent and types of innovations they involve, and illustrated this typology through analyzing the case of “Smart Bodø”. This smart city continuum distinguishes between an incremental and radical scope of smart city initiatives, where the incremental end of the spectrum entails the technological dimension, and the radical end entails the combination of technological, organizational and collaborative innovations in a comprehensive, experimental approach.

The empirical insights from the Smart Bodø case indicate that there is not as much focus on technological innovations in smart city initiatives as one might expect from the theoretical conceptualizations. Findings suggest that the technological dimension of smart cities is applied with the intent that it could lead to improvement of everyday life for the inhabitants of the city. However, this seems a bit ambiguous from the municipality's perspective, as they are involved in several technology-based initiatives. This inconsistency between rhetoric and practical application of the smart city concept indicates that technology is not only an instrument in improving conditions in urban areas, but also that the use of new technology is publicly acknowledged as it has a strategic value to achieve consensus in political matters. An implication of such approaches could be a deflation of political life in urban areas, a matter that needs to be addressed. Still, technology comprises an important tool for enhancing smart urban innovation, also in a comprehensive approach, as seen in the Bodø case. Thus, technology might even have been mislabeled as the big bad wolf in a smart city context.