Research Topics

I am particularly interested in the consequences that institutions have on societies, their inequalities and potentials for progress. Theoretically, I pursue interdisciplinary work between Development Economics, Organization Studies and Institutional Theory. Methodologically, I have tried to advance mesoeconomic analyses to overcome the limitations of macro cross-sectional studies.

Publications

Peer-reviewed Articles:

• "Institutions as Meso-factors of Development: A Human Development Perspective", Journal of Contextual Economics [Schmoller's Jahrbuch], 138: 53-88, 2019.

• "Institutional Interconnections: Understanding Symbiotic Relationships", Journal of Institutional Economics, 14(5): 853-876; doi:10.1017/S1744137417000558, 2018

• “What Makes Poor Countries Poor? Institutional Determinants of Development – Book Review”, Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, 14:4, 605-607, 2013.

Documentary:

• "Collective Love: a scientific documentary on social policies and inequalities in Brazil", Laboratorio Expo, Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, 2015.

  • Trailer (Portuguese with English trailer)

  • Full Movie (Portuguese with English subtitles)

Working Papers:

• "What Feeds on What? Networks of Interdependencies between Culture and Institutions", DEM Working Paper Series 13/2021; under review.

• "Institutional Distributive Effects: the Identity Nexus" (with A. Nicholls), presented at EGOS, July, 2018; at ESID, September 2019 and WINIR, September 2019; under review.

Theoretically, I am mainly interested in how social innovation practices lay foundations for institutional change. Empirically, my work has concentrated on designing impact and multidimensional assessment frameworks to understand how social innovation actually changes societies, and through which mechanisms.

Publications

Peer-reviewed Articles:

• "Theorizing Social Innovation to Address Marginalization" (with A. Nicholls and E. Chiappero-Martinetti), Journal of Social Entrepreneurship, Vol.8 (3), pp: 265-270, 2017.

• "Social Innovation, Individuals and Societies: An Empirical Investigation of Multi-Layered Effects" (with E. Chiappero-Martinetti), Journal of Social Entrepreneurship, Vol.8 (3), pp: 271-301, 2017.

• "Tackling marginalisation through social innovation? Examining the EU social innovation policy agenda from a capabilities perspective" (with D. Edmiston and R. Ziegler), Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Vol.18, Issue 2, pp. 148-162, 2017.

• "Creating (economic) space for social innovation (with R. Ziegler, G. Molnar, E. Chiappero-Martinetti), Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, Vol.18, Issue 2, pp. 293-298, 2017.

• "How and when does speech-acting generate social innovations" (with T. Gran), Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research, Vol. 29, Issue 4, p. 393-409, 2016.

Chapters in Books

• "Creating Fair (Economic) Space for Social Innovation? A Capabilities perspective" (with R. Ziegler), in "Creating Economic Space for Social Innovation" (A. Nicholls and R. Ziegler, eds), Oxford University Press, December 2019.

• "Empirical Approaches to Social Innovation" (with G. Mildenberger, G. Schimpf, E. Chiappero-Martinetti) in "Creating Economic Space for Social Innovation" (A. Nicholls and R. Ziegler, eds), Oxford University Press, December 2019.

• "Social Innovation and Agency" (with E. Chiappero-Martinetti, R. Ziegler, M. van der Linden, C. van Beers), in "Creating Economic Space for Social Innovation" (A. Nicholls and R. Ziegler, eds), Oxford University Press, December 2019.

• "The Extended Social Grid Model Revisited" (with R. Ziegler, A. Nicholls, J. Aro, C. van Beers, E. Chiappero-Martinetti, D. Edmiston, A. Havas, R. Heiskala, K. Kubeczko, M. J. van der Linden, L. Maestripieri, G. Mildenberger, R. Nastepaad, G. Molnár, G. Schimpf,) in "Creating Economic Space for Social Innovation" (A. Nicholls and R. Ziegler, eds), Oxford University Press, December 2019.

• "The Impact of Social Innovation" (with A. Nicholls, G. Mildenberger, E. Chiappero-Martinetti) in "Creating Economic Space for Social Innovation" (A. Nicholls and R. Ziegler, eds), Oxford University Press, December 2019.

• "Social Innovation Policy" (with A. Nicholls, D. Edmiston, A. Havas, G. Molnár, K. Kubeczko, R. Ziegler) in "Creating Economic Space for Social Innovation" (A. Nicholls and R. Ziegler, eds), Oxford University Press, December 2019.

• "At the Roots of Institutional Innovation", in "Rules of Utopia: Policies to drive us out of the crisis" (Enrica Chiappero-Martinetti, ed.), Quaderni/30, Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, 2019.

Working Papers:

• "From individual reflection to collective action: How social innovation empowers people" (with E. Chiappero-Martinetti, L. Maestripieri and T. Giroletti), presented at HDCA, September 2019; under review.

Related Projects

Creating Economic Space for Social Innovation - EU/FP7

Coordinator: University of Oxford (UK)

Partnership: University of Oxford, Technical University Delft, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt Universität Greifswald, Centre for Social Investment Universität Heidelberg, University of Pavia, Tampere University, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Hungarian Academy of Science, Austrian Institute of Technology

In investigating development issues, I prefer adopting a human development perspective, focussing on non-monetary outcomes, mainly. Theoretically, I am interested in unfolding the complexity of development processes, this has driven my methodological choices which have tried to be multidimensional, multi-level and attentive to the interaction between structural factors and individual conditions.

Publications

Peer-reviewed Articles:

• "Methodological Questions for the post-2015 Development Agenda" (with Jacopo Bonan), Glocalism: Journal of Culture, Politics and Innovation, issue 2014:1-2, DOI: 10.12893/gjcpi.2014.1-2.8, 2014.

• "The Role of Social Participation for Women's Ability to Combine Motherhood and Employment Security in Mali and Ghana", African Population Studies, Vol. 28, No. 2, p. 834- 853, 2014.

Chapters in Books:

• "Human Development and Economic Growth" (with E. Chiappero and M. Signorelli), in "Palgrave Dictionary of Emerging Markets and Transition Economics" (J. Hoelscher and H. Tomann eds.), Palgrave MacMillan, 2016.

• "Pillars of Social Sustainability" (with E. Chiappero and M. Fabbri), in Laboratorio Expo. The Many Faces of Sustainability, XLIX Annale della Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, p. 93- 119, 2015.

• “The Light and Shade of Multidimensional indexes: How Methodological Choices Impact on Empirical Results”, (with Enrica Chiappero-Martinetti), in Maggino, F and Nuvolati, G. (eds.) “Quality of life in Italy: Research and Reflections”, Social Indicators Research Series 48, Springer, pp.69-106, Dordrecht Heidelberg New York London, pp. 69-106, 2012.

Other:

• "Can the Context Mediate Macro-Policy Outcomes? Contextual Differences in the Returns to Bolsa Familia in Brazil", UNU-WIDER Working Paper Series, WP/2014/049, 2014.

• "Meso Factors of Development: the Role of the Context for Human Development Achievements", PhD thesis, IUSS Pavia.

Working Papers:

• "The Winners and Winners of Globalisation, but Who is Winning More? A Case Study of the Construction Industry in Accra, Ghana" (with S. Masino), presented at ESID, September 2019.

• "How to tackle the subjective measurement of agency: an application of the Anchoring Vignette methodology to the Relative Autonomy Index" (w. Toa Giroletti, Enrica Chiappero-Martinetti and Enrico Fabrizi).

Related Projects

• Laboratorio EXPO, 2013-2015

Coordinator: Fondazione Giangiacomo Feltrinelli

Partnership: Università Statale di Milano, Università Bicocca, Istituto Universitario degli Studi di Pavia, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore

• Enhancing the Capabilities of the Most Vulnerable: A Pilot Project on Inequalities in Human Development in Bamako and Accra, 2011-2013

Coordinator: SNIS - Swiss Network for International Studies

Partnership: University of Geneva, Harvard University, University of Pavia, University of Bamako, University of Ghana

• Towards an Integrated View of Human Rights and Human Development, 2007 - 2011

Partnership: University of Pavia, University of Padua, University of Amman

I am interested in tourism because its development is intrinsically intertwined with a multitude of socio-economic development paths. I have mainly worked as consultant in this field, however, and focussed less on academic publishing.

Publications

• "Indirizzi Operativi per Valorizzare il Territorio a Scopo Culturale e Turistico", (with Bernhard Bauer), technical report published for the project condividiAMO, Provincia di Milano, April, 2014. ("User's manual for enhancing a territory's value through cultural and sustainable tourism")

• “How to use Tourism as Local Development Path – An Operational Methodology for Sustainable Tourism in Modern Times”, M.S. Ramaiah Management Review, Vol.2, Issue 2., Jul-Dec 2010, pp. 2-11, 2010.

Working Papers:

• "World Heritage Sites as Collective Goods that Foster Human Development: A Case Study in Petra, Jordan" (w. Sofia De Sanctis and Bernhard Bauer).

Related Projects

• condividiAMO - Paesaggi Storie Culture Saperi, 2011 - 2014

Coordinator: Provincia di Milano

• Bridging the Gap Between Local People and Global Tourism Business, 2007 - 2009

Coordinator: COSPE

Partnership: Local NGOs in Italy, China, Nepal and Mongolia