When do researchers collaborate? Toward a model of collaboration propensity

This exploratory study compares two approaches to understanding the “collaboration propensity” of individual researchers. On the one hand, social comparisons of disciplines would suggest that collaboration is a function of orientation toward individual versus collective responsibility for discovery....

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology 2007-12, Vol.58 (14), p.2226-2239
Main Author: Birnholtz, Jeremy P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Collaboration
Comparative analysis
Cooperation
Exact sciences and technology
Information and communication sciences
Information science. Documentation
Library and information science. General aspects
Researchers
Sciences and techniques of general use
Social networks
Studies
Use and user studies. Information needs
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This exploratory study compares two approaches to understanding the “collaboration propensity” of individual researchers. On the one hand, social comparisons of disciplines would suggest that collaboration is a function of orientation toward individual versus collective responsibility for discovery. A contrasting approach would hold that collaboration depends on the work researchers are engaged in—when it is useful to collaborate, they will do so regardless of the social climate. Results presented here suggest that this latter approach is potentially more powerful but that there are complexities in measurement and operationalization that urge a more nuanced treatment of collaboration propensity.
ISSN:1532-2882
2330-1635
1532-2890
2330-1643
DOI:10.1002/asi.20684