[Séminaire Caen] Harmful Interdependencies in Entrepreneurial Ecosystems: Insights from Network Analysis and Symbiosis Typologies

Abstract:
Entrepreneurial ecosystems (EEs) involve intertwined enabling and constraining dynamics, yet conventional Social Network Analysis (SNA) often fails to differentiate beneficial from detrimental interdependencies. This limitation obscures how ecosystem configurations actually foster or hinder collective value creation. To address this gap, we develop the Ecosystem Polarity Matrix (EPM), a framework that integrates ecological symbiosis typologies into SNA to capture both the structure and polarity of interdependencies. The EPM distinguishes relationships that enhance value creation from those that constrain it and generates two complementary actor typologies—based on influence polarity (Pollinators, Inhibitors, Regulators, Neutralists) and dependence polarity (Resource-seekers, Vulnerables, Dependent Regulators, Autonomous actors). Combining these dimensions yields a refined 16-profile taxonomy that spans mutualistic, commensal, ambivalent, parasitic, competitive, and inhibitory configurations. By shifting from dyadic ties to system-level patterns, the EPM reveals how harmful interdependencies create misalignments that weaken EE performance. An application to the French entrepreneurial rebound ecosystem illustrates the framework’s analytical and theoretical contributions.