Three decades of research on innovation and inequality: Causal scenarios, explanatory factors and suggestions

Prompted by rising income inequality (in short, inequality) in advanced economies, a rapidly growing number of studies across various fields and disciplines social science have, since the 1990s, sought to find out how innovation (as main engine economic progress) affects distribution modern-day capitalist societies. Using systematic literature review method, this paper provides first critical 166 on published 114 journals last three decades (1990–2019). It is shown that, while great majority under concur that induces inequality, finding subject disciplinary origins research (e.g., development studies, economics, geography, etc.) country investigation. Furthermore, guided an original causally holistic analytical framework, analysis demonstrates relationship between significantly more complex than most popular theoretical perspective (i.e., skill-biased technological change account) has let us believe; particular, it five causal scenarios range explanatory factors skill premiums, unemployment, international trade, declining union membership, spatial aspects, changing employment conditions, policy, horizontal inequalities, sectoral composition types innovation). The ends discussing findings, policy implications knowledge gaps, one which concerns following under-researched question: how, what conditions do publicly funded policies reduce (or increase) inequality?