The use of behavioural additionality evaluation in innovation policy making

The key object of innovation policy is to change behaviour of actors in order to improve innovation capabilities and outcomes. The overarching aim of this article is to improve our understanding of how this behavioural additionality (BA) can be better conceptualized and put into practice in evaluation and policy making. The article first outlines the theoretical framework of the concept of BA. On that basis it looks in detail at the way BA is currently operationalized in evaluation practice and how the concept is applied in the interaction between policy makers and evaluators. The article utilizes a statistical analysis of 171 innovation policy evaluations, a text analysis of selected BA evaluation reports, and finally a number of in-depth case studies of evaluations. Based on the conceptualization and the empirical findings, the article identifies three different uses of BA in innovation policy evaluations. The article further concludes that despite the widespread use of the concept of BA, an improved theoretical basis and serious methodological improvements are needed to realize the full potential of the concept for evaluation and policy practice. © 2012 The Author. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.