Living Labs as Adaptive Intermediary Structures Embedded Within Regional Innovation Systems: A Conceptual Framework for Social Transformation in Peripheral Regions

Regional development increasingly occurs under conditions of uncertainty, complexity, and accelerating socio-economic change, creating a need for adaptive approaches that support learning and transformation. Although Living Labs have gained prominence as environments for co-creation and experimentation, their broader systemic role in regional development remains insufficiently theorized. This article addresses this gap by conceptualizing Living Labs as adaptive intermediary structures embedded within Regional Innovation Systems that facilitate social transformation in peripheral regions. The study adopts a conceptual research design based on integrative theory synthesis, combining insights from Living Lab research, Regional Innovation Systems theory, complex adaptive systems theory, and behavioural approaches to adaptation and institutional learning. The resulting framework identifies four interconnected components: external transformation pressures, Living Lab mechanisms (co-creation, experimentation, stakeholder coordination, and knowledge exchange), feedback processes (trust-building, learning, absorptive capacity, and institutional adaptation), and regional transformation outcomes. The analysis suggests that Living Labs contribute to regional resilience, innovation capacity, adaptive governance, social inclusion, and socio-economic development through feedback-driven learning and adaptation processes. Rather than functioning solely as innovation platforms, Living Labs are interpreted as adaptive intermediary structures that connect experimentation with systemic transformation. The article advances Living Lab scholarship by providing a systems-oriented framework and formulates theoretical propositions that can guide future empirical research on regional adaptation and transformation.