Methodological Issues in Assessing the Socio-Economic and Innovation Potentials of the Development of Regions

The study focuses on the methodological foundations for assessing the socio-economic and innovation potential of Ukraine's regional development. The purpose of the article is to develop a methodological approach to their comprehensive assessment based on multicomponent integral evaluation and matrix positioning in order to identify regional disparities, determine territorial development types, and substantiate differentiated priorities of state regional policy. The methodology includes the formation of two systems of partial indicators, their classification into stimulators and destimulators, min-max normalisation, entropy-based determination of weighting coefficients, and calculation of integral indicators of socio-economic and innovation potential. The resulting values were used to position the regions within a nine-quadrant "socio-economic potential – innovation potential" matrix, the boundaries of which were determined according to the proportions of the golden ratio. Calculations based on 2024 data revealed substantial interregional disparities. Dnipropetrovsk region was the only region with high values for both types of potential. Kharkiv region ranked first in terms of innovation potential but recorded a considerably lower socio-economic result, confirming that scientific and educational resources do not automatically translate into economic outcomes. The matrix positioning also identified regions with relatively stronger economic performance but a weaker innovation base, as well as territories with low values for both components. The scientific novelty of the study lies in combining two independent integral assessments within a single matrix, which makes it possible to identify balanced and unbalanced types of regional development. The proposed approach can be used to determine targeted priorities for state support, prepare regional development strategies, and monitor territorial recovery.