Strategic Intelligence on Emerging Technologies: Scientometric Overlay Mapping

TL;DR

This paper explores scientometric overlay mapping as a strategic tool for governing emerging technologies, demonstrating its adaptability and potential for integrated, cross-context analysis through case studies in the medical field.

Contribution

It develops an integrative framework for overlay mapping techniques and applies it to longitudinal case studies, highlighting its utility for strategic intelligence in emerging tech governance.

Findings

Overlay mapping techniques are flexible and adaptable.

These techniques enable cross-case and cross-context comparisons.

They can serve as platforms for distributed strategic intelligence.

Abstract

This paper examines the use of scientometric overlay mapping as a tool of 'strategic intelligence' to aid the governance of emerging technologies. We develop an integrative synthesis of different overlay mapping techniques and associated perspectives on technological emergence across the geographical, social, and cognitive spaces. To do so, we longitudinally analyse (with publication and patent data) three case-studies of emerging technologies in the medical domain. These are: RNA interference (RNAi), Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) testing technologies for cervical cancer, and Thiopurine Methyltransferase (TPMT) genetic testing. Given the flexibility (i.e. adaptability to different sources of data) and granularity (i.e. applicability across multiple levels of data aggregation) of overlay mapping techniques, we argue that these techniques can favour the integration and comparison of results from different contexts and cases, thus potentially functioning as platform for a 'distributed' strategic intelligence for analysts and decision-makers.