Make way for the new wave : Living Labs as a Design Science Research Approach

Living Lab (LL) has been used as a milieu as well as methodology for open innovation. However, the impression of LL as a research methodology among academia is still blurring. The LL carries many elements of design science research paradigm such as innovation, artifact, evaluation, design principles, etc. however it still needs conceptual underpinning to proclaim it as a valid Design Science Research (DSR) methodology. The peculiarity of the LL approach compare to existing DSR methodologies is its openness, co-creation, and evaluation of IT artifacts beyond organizational context. With the continual growth of open innovation platforms, the LL as a DSR methodology can play a supplementary role along with its other companion such as design science, action research, and action design research. In this regard, this paper will provide a conceptual clarity in establishing the LL as a DSR methodology in the context of open innovation and cocreation of IT artifact that goes beyond organizational setup.