The Role of Academic Libraries in Strengthening Startup Innovation in the University Entrepreneurial Ecosystem
Keywords:
Academic library, startup innovation, academic entrepreneurship ecosystem, information entrepreneurship, productive space, knowledge managementAbstract
This study aimed to systematically review the role of academic libraries in strengthening startup innovation within university entrepreneurial ecosystems. This study was conducted as a systematic review. The search process was performed in Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, Emerald, SpringerLink, Taylor & Francis, ProQuest, Google Scholar, SID, Magiran, Noormags, and Civilica for studies published from 2010 to the end of 2025. In the first stage, 1286 records were identified. After removing 312 duplicate records, 974 sources were screened based on title and abstract, and 153 full-text sources were assessed for eligibility. Finally, 48 eligible studies were included in the final analysis. Data were collected using a researcher-developed extraction form and analyzed through thematic analysis and narrative synthesis. The findings showed that the informational and research role of academic libraries was reported in 42 studies, equal to 87.5 percent; the educational and skill-development role in 39 studies, equal to 81.3 percent; the technological and digital role in 36 studies, equal to 75.0 percent; the networking and relational role in 33 studies, equal to 68.8 percent; the knowledge commercialization support role in 31 studies, equal to 64.6 percent; and the cultural and motivational role in 28 studies, equal to 58.3 percent. Academic libraries had the strongest contribution to problem identification and idea formation, reported in 85.4 percent of studies, and idea validation, reported in 77.1 percent. The main barriers were weak institutional connection between libraries and university entrepreneurship centers, reported in 72.9 percent, and the limitation of libraries to traditional services, reported in 66.7 percent. The results indicate that academic libraries can function as knowledge, educational, technological, relational, and cultural infrastructures within university entrepreneurial ecosystems. By reducing informational uncertainty, improving research skills, facilitating access to data, and supporting knowledge commercialization, they can enhance the quality of startup innovation.
Downloads
References
Ayala-Gaytán, E. A., Villasana, M., & Naranjo-Priego, E. E. (2024). University Entrepreneurial Ecosystems and Graduate Entrepreneurship. The Journal of Entrepreneurship, 33(1), 88-117. https://doi.org/10.1177/09713557241233905
Ballesteros, L. A. A., Esquivel, F. A., Moreno, S. E. R., García, S. J. A., & Cerrillo, M. A. R. (2023). University Entrepreneurship. South Florida Journal of Development, 4(6), 2504-2516. https://doi.org/10.46932/sfjdv4n6-023
Botelho, A. J. J., & Almeida, M. (2024). Start-Ups in the Brazilian Innovation Ecosystem. Science Technology and Society, 29(1), 120-139. https://doi.org/10.1177/09717218231220344
Dalimunthe, D. M. J., Harahap, R. H., Dalimunthe, R. F., & Absah, Y. (2024). Assessing the Entrepreneurial University Framework: A Model for Institutional Self-Sufficiency. Journal of Ecohumanism, 3(4), 871-885. https://doi.org/10.62754/joe.v3i4.3613
Dhiman, V., & Arora, M. (2024). Exploring the Linkage Between Business Incubation and Entrepreneurship: Understanding Trends, Themes and Future Research Agenda. LBS Journal of Management & Research, 22(1), 66-92. https://doi.org/10.1108/lbsjmr-06-2023-0021
Graybeal, G., & Ferrier, M. (2021). Examination of Pedagogy and Instructional Innovation to Create Entrepreneurs in the Media and Technology Fields. Entrepreneurship Education and Pedagogy, 6(1), 110-134. https://doi.org/10.1177/25151274211033155
Gupta, S. (2021). Now You See Me? Auto-Ethnographic Insights From Inside the Black Box of Business Incubation. Prometheus, 37(4). https://doi.org/10.13169/prometheus.37.4.0321
Gupta, V., Gupta, C., Swacha, J., & Rubalcaba, L. (2023). Prototyping Technology Adoption Among Entrepreneurship and Innovation Libraries for Rural Health Innovations. Library Hi Tech, 42(6), 1760-1795. https://doi.org/10.1108/lht-03-2023-0120
Harris, S. (2022). Building an Entrepreneurial Caribbean University Library: Practice, Possibilities, and Lessons. Alexandria the Journal of National and International Library and Information Issues, 32(1), 3-29. https://doi.org/10.1177/09557490221103034
Huang, Y.-H., & Chen, C.-L. (2024). Comparative Analysis of Social and University Incubators From the Perspective of Public-Private Partnership. International Journal of Arts Humanities & Social Science, 05(06), 20-30. https://doi.org/10.56734/ijahss.v5n6a4
Jiewang, C., & Li, J. (2022). The Composition and Operation Mechanism of Digital Entrepreneurial Ecosystem: A Study of Hangzhou Yunqi Town as an Example. Sustainability, 14(24), 16607. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142416607
Joshi, K., Krishna, H. S., & Loganathan, M. (2021). Resources or Capabilities: A Study of Startup Emergence Within Applied Research Universities in India. https://doi.org/10.31235/osf.io/uevnj
Jyotishi, S. R. (2020). Technology Transfer Evolution: Driving Economic Prosperity. https://doi.org/10.31219/osf.io/58sbn
Kabelele, D. P., Banele, S. D., & Gomera, W. C. (2023). Innovation Hub a Venture for Students’ Entrepreneurial Talents: A Case of College of Business Education. International Journal of Research in Business and Social Science (2147-4478), 12(5), 362-371. https://doi.org/10.20525/ijrbs.v12i5.2703
Kovács, Á., Lévai, I., & Nagy, H. (2023). Creation Experience of Startup Campuses in Major Regions (North America, Far East, Australia and Europe). Regionalnaya Ekonomika Yug Rossii(2), 4-15. https://doi.org/10.15688/re.volsu.2023.2.1
Leebaw, D., & Tomlinson, C. (2020). What Do You Get When You Mix Libraries and Entrepreneurship? The Case of an Innovation Hub at a Large Research Library. Library Leadership & Management, 34(4). https://doi.org/10.5860/llm.v34i4.7428
Longva, K. K. (2021). Student Venture Creation: Developing Social Networks Within Entrepreneurial Ecosystems in the Transition From Student to Entrepreneur. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 27(5), 1264-1284. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijebr-09-2020-0661
Maritz, A., Nguyen, Q., Shrivastava, A., & Ivanov, S. (2022). University Accelerators and Entrepreneurship Education in Australia: Substantive and Symbolic Motives. Education + Training, 65(4), 654-673. https://doi.org/10.1108/et-08-2021-0325
Masoumi, M. (2023). Exploring the Influence of Entrepreneurial Identity on Students’ Choice Between Entrepreneurship Courses and University-Based Incubators. Asia Pacific Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 17(2), 137-153. https://doi.org/10.1108/apjie-03-2023-0052
Mian, S. A. (2021). Whither Modern Business Incubation? Definitions, Evolution, Theory, and Evaluation. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781788974783.00008
Peters, R. M., Pretorius, T., & Friedrich, C. (2025). A Guiding Framework for Establishing Entrepreneurial Higher Education Institutions in South Africa. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7288402/v1
Piqué, J. M., Berbegal‐Mirabent, J., & Etzkowitz, H. (2020). The Role of Universities in Shaping the Evolution of Silicon Valley’s Ecosystem of Innovation. Triple Helix Journal, 7(2-3), 277-321. https://doi.org/10.1163/21971927-bja10009
Roberts, C., Hiller, J., & Szostek, J. (2024). Cultivating an Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in an Underserved Area: The Story of One University’s Engagement. Industry and Higher Education, 39(5), 504-513. https://doi.org/10.1177/09504222241293920
Roundy, P. T. (2021). Leadership in Startup Communities: How Incubator Leaders Develop a Regional Entrepreneurial Ecosystem. The Journal of Management Development, 40(3), 190-208. https://doi.org/10.1108/jmd-10-2020-0320
Samo, A. H., Channa, N. A., & Qureshi, N. A. (2021). The Role of Universities and Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in Producing Entrepreneurs for Industry 4.0. Journal of Higher Education Theory and Practice, 21(11). https://doi.org/10.33423/jhetp.v21i11.4661
Scillitoe, J. L., & Birasnav, M. (2021). Ease of Market Entry of Indian Startups: Formal and Informal Institutional Influences. South Asian Journal of Business Studies, 11(2), 195-215. https://doi.org/10.1108/sajbs-07-2019-0131
Shukla, S., Dwivedi, A. K., & Acharya, S. R. (2022). Entrepreneurship Teaching in India and the Region. The Journal of Entrepreneurship, 31(2_suppl), S160-S184. https://doi.org/10.1177/09713557221107444
Swartz, E., Marks, J., & Scheepers, C. B. (2020). Venture Support Organizations – Lighting a Path for Entrepreneurship in South Africa? Entrepreneurship Research Journal, 10(2). https://doi.org/10.1515/erj-2020-0060
Toane, C., & Shujah, S. (2024). Campus Entrepreneurs’ Research Habits and Needs: A Five-Year Study. Reference Services Review, 52(2), 257-277. https://doi.org/10.1108/rsr-01-2024-0001
Uctu, R., & Al-Silefanee, R. (2024). Understanding Entrepreneurial Ecosystem in the Middle East: Insights From Isenberg's Model. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Knowledge, 12(1), 86-109. https://doi.org/10.37335/ijek.v12i1.211
Wang, C. C., Shi, Y., & Jiang, S. (2024). The Early Bird Catches the Flywheel: Pedagogical Components of Entrepreneurship Education In American Higher Education Institutions. Education + Training, 66(8), 1077-1095. https://doi.org/10.1108/et-05-2023-0202
Wang, X., Sun, X., Liu, S., & Chen, M. (2021). A Preliminary Exploration of Factors Affecting a University Entrepreneurship Ecosystem. Frontiers in psychology, 12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.732388
Zaidi, R. A., Khan, M. M., Khan, R. A., & Mujtaba, B. G. (2021). Do Entrepreneurship Ecosystem and Managerial Skills Contribute to Startup Development? South Asian Journal of Business Studies, 12(1), 25-53. https://doi.org/10.1108/sajbs-07-2020-0233
Zhou, L., & Zhang, Y. (2024). Inspiration From Case Studies of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Education in Three Universities in France. International Journal of New Developments in Education, 6(2). https://doi.org/10.25236/ijnde.2024.060209
Zhu, M.-x., Kim, I. J., & An, Z.-Q. (2021). Optimizing the Construction of Multidimensional System of Entrepreneurship Education From the Perspective of the Second Classroom. Scientific Programming, 2021, 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/2344527
Downloads
Published
Submitted
Revised
Accepted
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 1404 Zeinab Sedaghatian
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
