A poset-based analysis of regional innovation at European level

This paper examines the performance of regional innovation across 220 European regions. A poset-based approach is adopted to obtain a ranking of the European regions, which is then compared with the results described in the Regional Innovation Scoreboard 2019 (RIS 2019). The poset-based approach is based on the theory of partially ordered sets; it respects the ordinal nature of data, maintains a high standard of objectivity and avoids compensation effects caused by averaging indicators, possibly leading to different positions for some regions. The poset-based ranking indeed reveals a geographical map of innovation that differs from the RIS19. The results show that seven regions located in Italy, Austria and Romania have improved their position in the ranking, whereas six regions located in Denmark, United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Ireland have worsened their position in the ranking in comparison with the RIS19. The findings highlight the role of methodological choices in shaping regional innovation rankings and provide evidence useful for policymakers and regional stakeholders interested in understanding innovation performance without aggregation bias.