Social State and Personnel for the Russian Innovation System

Abstract

The development of the national innovation system in Russia is connected with the leading role of the state. The development of science and education as components of the innovation system can be considered through the prism of the welfare state development in terms of personnel training. The welfare state is considered in the context of its evolution into a form where social investment prevails. This article investigates what kind of policy and investments are required for the development of education and science in a modern welfare state in the context of development of the Russian innovation system. Qualitative methods, such as the analysis of the narratives contained in 27 in-depth interviews with the representatives of the academic sphere, are used as an adequate tool for the analysis of the issue of scientific personnel training and socialization which, from the actors’ point of view, influence the development of the Russian innovation system. The analysis of the narratives about the Russian innovation system has revealed several problems related to the reproduction of human capital, including the problem of young scientists’ need for a high-quality 'environment' and not only money, the lack of the institution system aimed at motivating and attracting young people to work in the scientific field, the absence of the talent search institution in Russia, the shortage of competent and promising personnel, and the problem of secondary education and schoolchildren scientific training. According to the representatives of the academic sphere, the main factor for providing sufficient incentives for investment in human capital in the medium and long term is the consistency in the current state policy and in creating conditions for the development of education and science. Social policy in the field of education and science should become an important strategy for social investment, contributing to the improvement of the quality of human capital and human resource potential of the RIS. In Russian conditions, it is necessary, first of all, to develop the institutional infrastructure for reproduction of human capital for innovation, training of scientific personnel, and their socialization in the academic sphere.