Living Lab Assessment Method (LLAM): Towards a Methodology for Context-Sensitive Impact and Value Assessment

This paper presents the Living Lab Assessment Method (LLAM), a context-sensitive framework for assessing impact and value creation in Living Labs (LLs). While LLs have become established instruments for Open and Urban Innovation, systematic and transferable approaches to evaluate their impact remain scarce and still show theoretical and practical barriers. This study proposes a new methodological approach that aims to address these challenges through the development of the LLAM, the Living Lab Assessment Method. This study reports a five-year iterative development process embedded in Ghent’s urban and social innovation ecosystem through the combination of three complementary methodological pillars: (1) co-creation and co-design with lead users, ensuring alignment with practitioner needs and real-world conditions; (2) multiple case study research, enabling iterative refinement across diverse Living Lab projects, and (3) participatory action research, integrating reflexive and iterative cycles of observation, implementation, and adjustment. The LLAM was empirically developed and validated across four use cases, each contributing to the method’s operational robustness and contextual adaptability. Results show that LLAM captures multi-level value creation, ranging from individual learning and network strengthening to systemic transformation, by linking participatory processes to outcomes across stakeholder, project, and ecosystem levels. The paper concludes that LLAM advances both theoretical understanding and practical evaluation of Living Labs by providing a structured, adaptable, and empirically grounded methodology for assessing their contribution to sustainable and inclusive urban innovation.