Call for Abstracts/Papers (DC4DM)

2023-07-13

Call for Papers—Special Issue
Digital Creativity for Developing Digital Maturity Future Skills

 

Guest Editors: Valentina Vezzani (Universidade da Madeira), Marita Canina (Politecnico di Milano),
Carmen Bruno (Politecnico di Milano), Eduardo Leite (Universidade da Madeira), Shujoy Chakraborty
(Universidade da Madeira), Luís Ferreira (Universidade da Madeira)

 

Deadline for abstract submission: September 4, 2023

 

The world is undergoing profound transformations in an era characterized by globalization and rapid technological advancements (Teichert R., 2019). The pervasive influence of digital technologies has permeated every aspect of people's lives, from how we engage in sports and consume food to the way we conduct business and interact with others. These technologies have become integral to our human existence, yet a comprehensive understanding of their impact is missing and strategic guidance amidst this ongoing transformation is needed.

By quoting Roy Amara (1980) "We tend to overestimate the effect of a technology in the short run and underestimate the effect in the long run", and by recognizing that emerging technologies have far-reaching effects, often exceeding the initial expectations, the priority becomes to focus on an idea of digital maturity. Also, the advent of new digital technologies carries the power to reshape behaviors, reinvent social relationships, and redefine the very fabric of humanity. Klaus Schwab (2016) refers to it not only as the Fourth Industrial Revolution but also as a sweeping “transformation of humankind”.

Amidst this dynamic and uncertain landscape, individuals must acquire new skills and competencies to navigate the ongoing digital transformation. Organizations, particularly small and medium enterprises and business incubators must welcome and invest in digital talents capable of leading them towards digital maturity. In this context the overarching objective of the Erasmus+ funded project Digital Creativity for Developing Digital Maturity Future Skills - DC4DM (www.dc4dm.eu), has been to implement a human-centered educational model to empower individuals with Digital Creative Abilities (DCAs) and disseminate it within a European network of HEIs, SMEs and startups. The DC4DM project envisions the dissemination of a new culture on digital creativity with the purpose of fostering responsible use of new technologies and propel organizations towards the design of more sustainable and just futures.

Digital creativity can be defined as the human ability to create innovative and original digital outcomes leveraging the opportunities presented by digital technologies in a strategic and responsible way (Bruno, 2020). Digital creativity is a multifaceted phenomenon that encompasses the cognitive, emotional, physical, and social dimensions of the human experience. This means that the essential skills, knowledge, and values which are required to activate and foster a creative process must be constantly updated and evolve at the speed of digital advancements too. To guarantee a thriving transition towards maturity, the next generation of professionals should be equipped with a mix of “hard” skills, such as technology design and data analysis, and “humancentric” skills, including cooperation, empathy, social awareness, and global citizenship, to empower them to shape a future characterized by inclusivity and equality (WEF, 2020). Higher Education Institutions (HEIs)—particularly those offering Engineering, Design and Entrepreneurship curricula—have then the task to updating and re-thinking their traditional educational models acknowledging that digital technologies are becoming our next invisible and ubiquitous nature.

In short, with this special issue of Journal of Entrepreneurial Researchers we aim to investigate the concepts of digital creativity and digital maturity from an entrepreneurship, design or engineering perspective. We welcome contributions regarding theoretical studies, research projects pr learning experiences through which it is possible to reflect on the impact of digital transformation in every sector of our society. For instance, how is digital transformation not only altering mindsets, behaviors, and social attitudes but also revolutionizing the processes of creation and innovation? How can small and medium scale enterprises keep up with the fast pace of digital technologies developments? How are work requirements and skillsets changing? How is higher education aligning with the needs and opportunities of the digital era? How can achieving digital maturity be an opportunity for sustainable transformation?

We welcome contributions covering a wide range of topics and application domains, which can
include (but are not limited to):

  • Digital transformation and innovation for small and medium enterprises and organizations.
  • Higher education for the Fourth Industrial Revolution: preparing creatives and entrepreneurs to
    guide organizations towards digital maturity.
  • Tech-foresight and design futures methods and applications for digital transformation.
  • Creativity and creative skills in the era of digital transformation.
  • Ethical dilemmas while achieving digital maturity.
  • Collaboration and communication strategies to envision sustainable and just future scenarios.
  • Eco-Entrepreneurship and the concept of growth in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.


Deadline for abstract submission: September 4, 2023


Abstracts (in English) with a maximum length of 500 words, including a title and up to 5 keywords, must be sent as an email attachment to dc4dm.project@gmail.com and CC to the guest editors indicated below. A short biographical note about the author/s (max. 100 words) must be sent too.

Notification of acceptance will be communicated by mid-September 2023.

Full papers (in English with a maximum length of 8,000 words including notes and references) will be due by December 8, 2023 and will be subject to a double-blind peer review process. We expect to publish the Special Issue in 2024.

Selected papers will be published free of charge. Also, this special issue at JER will be attributed with a DOI Crossref identification number and ISSN.

 

For information and questions, please do not hesitate to contact the guest editors:
Valentina Vezzani, vvezzani@staff.uma.pt
Marita Canina, marita.canina@polimi.it
Carmen Bruno, carmen.bruno@polimi.it
Eduardo Leite, eduardo.leite@staff.uma.pt


References

Amara, R. (1980). The futures field (Report). Menlo Park, CA: Institute for the Future: p.95. OCLC 7919207.

Bofylatos, S., Spyrou, T., Darzentas, J. S., & Darzentas, J. (2012). Designing for Sustainability: A generic Framework. Proceedings of the 10th European Academy of Design Conference: Crafting the Future, 11.

Bruno, C. (2022). Digital Creativity Dimension: A New Domain for Creativity. Creativity in the Design Process. Springer Series in Design and Innovation, Vol. 18. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-87258-8_3

Bruno, C. & Canina M.R. (2019). Creativity 4.0. Empowering creative process for digitally enhanced people. The Design Journal, 22(1), 2119–2131. https://doi.org/10.1080/14606925.2019.1594935

Bühring, J. & Liedtka, J. (2018). Embracing systematic futures thinking at the intersection of Strategic Planning, Foresight and Design. Journal of Innovation Management JIM, 6(3), 134–152.

Canina, M.R. & Bruno, C. (2021). Digital Creative Abilities for Achieving Digital Maturity. In S. Nazir, T.Z. Ahram, W. Karwowski (Eds.), Advances in Human Factors in Training, Education, and Learning Sciences. AHFE 2021. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, Vol 269. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80000-0_4

Canina, M.R. & Bruno, C. (2021). Design and Creativity for Developing Digital Maturity Skills. Proceedings of the International Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education, Herning, Denmark. https://doi.org/10.35199/EPDE.2021.46

DC4DM Project. https://www.dc4dm.eu

European Commission. The Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition. https://digital-skills-jobs.europa.eu/en/about/digitalskills-and-jobs-coalition

European Commission. Shaping Europe’s digital future. https://ec.europa.eu/digital-single-market/en

Gaziulusoy, Ï., & Öztekin, E. E. (2019). Design for sustainability transitions: Origins, attitudes and future directions. Sustainability (Switzerland), 11(13), [3601]. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11133601

Kane, C. (2017). Digital maturity, not digital transformation. MIT Sloan Manage. Rev. https://sloanreview.mit.edu

Kariv, D., Matlay, H., & Fayolle, A. (2019). Introduction: entrepreneurial trends meet entrepreneurial education. In A. Fayolle (Ed.), The Role and Impact of Entrepreneurship Education (pp. 1–11). Edward Elgar Online. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781786438232.00006

Neuhoff, R., Simeone, L., & Holst Laursen, L. (2022). The potential of design-driven futuring to support strategizing for sustainable futures. The Design Journal, 25, 955–975. https://doi.org/10.1080/14606925.2022.2121057

Piscicelli, L. (2023). The sustainability impact of a digital circular economy. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability. Elsevier, 61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cosust.2022.101251

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. Part 1: A New Way to Look at Ourselves and Our Kids. In M. Prensky (Ed.), From Digital Natives to Digital Wisdom: Hopeful Essays for 21st Century Learning (pp. 1–6). On the Horizon, 9(5). https://doi.org/10.4135/9781483387765

Ratten, V., Usmanij, P. (2021). Entrepreneurship education: Time for a change in research direction?. The International Journal of Management Education. Elsevier, 19(1). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijme.2020.100367

Schwab, K. (2016). The Fourth Industrial Revolution: what it means, how to respond. www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/01/the-fourth-industrial-revolution-what-it-means-and-how-to-respond/

Tang. T., Vezzani, V., Eriksson, V. (2020). Developing critical thinking, collective creativity skills and problem solving through playful design jams. Thinking Skills and Creativity, n.37. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2020.100696

Teichert R. (2019). Digital Transformation Maturity: A Systematic Review of Literature. Acta Universitatis Agriculturae et Silviculturae Mendelianae Brunensis, 67(6), 1673–1687.

World Economic Forum (2020). Schools of the Future. Defining New Models of Education for the Fourth Industrial Revolution (REF 09012020). Geneva, Switzerland. www.weforum.org/reports/schools-of-the-futuredefining-new-models-of-education-for-the-fourth-industrial-revolution

World Economic Forum (2020). The Future of Jobs Report 2020. Geneva, Switzerland. www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2020

World Economic Forum. Reskilling Revolution. https://initiatives.weforum.org/reskilling-revolution/home


Journal of Entrepreneurial Researchers

The Journal of Entrepreneurial Researchers (JER) is a semiannual magazine dedicated to globally
researching, developing, applying, and disseminating practices, based on the most advanced interdisciplinary knowledge, ultimately contributing to a more developed society—socially, economically, and environmentally. It will cover the various strands of knowledge with special emphasis on Green and Blue Economy, Eco-Entrepreneurship, Green Accounting, Sustainable Finance, Digital Innovation, Sustainability, and Social Inclusion.

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