The Covid-19 pandemic has affected various aspects of human life and changed many systems and practices of the past. Since the beginning of the pandemic, technology is among the fields that have received serious public attention. It's expected that technology has a sign More
The Covid-19 pandemic has affected various aspects of human life and changed many systems and practices of the past. Since the beginning of the pandemic, technology is among the fields that have received serious public attention. It's expected that technology has a significant impact on overcoming the Covid-19 crisis and resolving the challenges posed by it. However, the effects of Covid-19 on technology and technological innovation systems have received less attention. Using the futures wheel method, this research identifies and visualizes the direct and indirect consequences of Covid-19 on technology. The input of the focus group discussions for the design of the futures wheel is derived from the qualitative content analysis of existing studies and reports on the effects of Covid-19 on technology. After the first version was designed by the focus group, the results were presented to fifteen experts with different specialties to modify the wheel in addition to confirm the validity of the research. Comments were reached consensus in two rounds of interviews and the final version of the wheel was drawn. The research findings represent the pattern of Covid-19 effects on technology under four main consequences: recession and economic problems; the need for fast, efficient, and effective solutions to deal with the crisis; lockdown policies; and the environmental impact of Covid-19. The most important policy proposals to deal with the identified consequences are: supporting the development of crisis-related technologies; supporting the continuation of companies' activities; supporting innovation competitions; removing obstacles to the export of technological products; Expediting patenting and licensing processes; Applying demand-side innovation policy tools; Investigating the risks of emerging technologies; regulation of emerging technologies; Designing a dynamic business atlas; and removing restrictions on access to materials and equipment needed for research and development
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