In the twenty-first century, clusters can be observed in most developed economies. However, the scientific results regarding the effect of clusters on firm performance are highly contradictive. The inconsistencies in the empirical results make it difficult to infer general conclusions about the...

The aim of this paper is to introduce the special issue of Small Business Economics on "Radical Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and (Regional) Growth" and present a roadmap for future research in the area. This article argues that the link between the literature on radical innovation,...

The role of radical innovations for the economy has received increasing attention by German policy-makers. This paper investigates how (un-)related variety and external linkages influence these innovations in German labour market regions. Evidence is found that related and unrelated knowledge...

We present a model that explains how a cluster moves through a life cycle and why this movement differs from the industry life cycle. The model is based on three key processes: the changing heterogeneity in the cluster describes the movement of the cluster through the life cycle; the geographical...

The paper Investigates stability and change of regional economic activities in the longrun.As the unit of analysis we selected the machine tool industry in West Germany forthe years 1953 to 2002. We spot a strong variance in the activities between the differentregions. These differences are...

This book rigorously explores the critical, initial stage of cluster emergence in which the seeds for further growth are sown. Whether economic growth actually occurs, however, ultimately depends on various regional conditions and the processes in place. The contributors offer a broad spectrum...