Do research collaborations age like wine? Absolute and relative measures of CANZUK research partnerships' strength since the 1950s

Although previous studies of today's globalised and competitive research landscape have mentioned the research collaborations of CANZUK countries (i.e., Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom), none have yet studied them in detail. Further, such studies have used different measures of international research collaboration (IRC), resulting in disparate findings. This paper, therefore, analyses the strengths of CANZUK research collaborations, how those collaborations have changed over time, and assesses the effect of three ways of measures on the results (absolute strength, bilateral similarity, and multilateral similarity). We provide a detailed characterisation of the CANZUK research network and its relationships with partner countries, which reveals that the most collaborative CANZUK countries are the UK and Australia, among other findings. We also confirm that many findings differ depending on which measures are used. We offer an explanation of this difference with reference to the nature of the measures (i.e., what they really measure) and make suggestions for suitable measures in future studies depending on their purpose. Finally, we discuss how this study's findings can be used by research policy makers (in CANZUK and elsewhere) in deciding on research strategy and by researchers in appropriately measuring IRC.

Factor Analysis of Interteam Collaboration Process for Family Planning Program (Longitudinal Prospective Time Series Design)

Background. The success of Family Planning (FP) program is strongly determined by a collaboration process of two organizations responsible in managing the program. There has not any collaboration concept discussing the program within team level but belonging to different organizations. Objective. To conduct factor analysis of interteam collaboration process in cross-organization for family planning. Methods. This was a quantitative study with a longitudinal prospective time series design conducted at the public health center and the family planning extension worker team in Lamongan. Interteam collaboration data were obtained by questionnaires for three months and analyzed by factor analysis utilizing SPSS program. Results. Factor analysis in interteam collaboration resulted in KMO value and Bartlett’s test > 0.5 with 0.000 significance and MSA value in Anti Image Metrics > 0.5.  The result of variable extraction process and factor rotation, with eigen value was 1.661. The cumulative total variety value was 83.057%.  Shared value (shared structural dimensions and shared team autonomy) and mutual benefit indicators could explain interteam collaboration variables. Conclusion. This study demonstrated that interteam collaboration process was an three factor, effort for shared structural dimensions and shared team autonomy process by considering mutual benefit of interteam belonging to different organizations.   Keyword:  interteam, collaboration,  time series, program

Identification of key actors in Industry 4.0 informal R&D network

INTRODUCTION: Industry 4.0 is a concept covering various research areas. Their development depends on the cooperation among several stakeholders, particularly public R&D (Research and Development) organisations.OBJECTIVES: This article aims to provide a mapping of informal strategic R&D partnerships of public R&D organisations in an ambiguously defined area of Industry 4.0.METHODS: Scientific collaboration mapping method based on self-identification is used. Moreover, social network analysis is used to discuss patterns and specific characteristics of this network. Empirical data are gathered through a questionnaire survey focused on managers of RD teams in the Slovak Republic.RESULTS: The resulting network of public R&D organisations operating in the field of Industry 4.0 in the Slovak Republic is connected, though characterised by low density. Intra-regional cooperation prevailed only in the region of the capital city. In other regions, cross-regional cooperation was dominant. Most cooperations occur between universities; cooperation between faculties and within one faculty is less frequent. Key teams of the network were identified based on their performance in three selected indicators of centrality. Three of them represented the first layer or core of the network.CONCLUSION: Within the network, active actors with a high number of cooperation and those located in its network centre who can support knowledge transfer across the identified R&D network are crucial. Our results confirmed that several variables are important to creating new collaborations and thus not limited to geographical proximity, institutional affinity and size of the workplace.

Ethical Concerns in the Rise of Co-Authorship and Its Role as a Proxy of Research Collaborations

Increasing specialization, changes in the institutional incentives for publication, and a host of other reasons have brought about a marked trend towards co-authored articles among researchers. These changes have impacted Science and Technology (S&T) policies worldwide. Co-authorship is often considered to be a reliable proxy for assessing research collaborations at micro, meso, and macro levels. Although co-authorship in a scholarly publication brings numerous benefits to the participating authors, it has also given rise to issues of publication integrity, such as ghost authorships and honorary authorships. The code of conduct of bodies such as the American Psychological Association (APA) and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) make it clear that only those who have significantly contributed to the study should be on the authorship list. Those who have contributed little have to be appropriately “acknowledged” in footnotes or in the acknowledgement section. However, these principles are sometimes transgressed, and a complete solution still remains elusive.

Co-autoria como indicador de redes de colaboração científica

Estudo bibliométrico sobre redes de colaboração científica entre os professores do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Epidemiologia da Universidade Federal de Pelotas (PPGE/UFPel). As características de colaboração foram estudadas através das co-autorias dos artigos publicados em periódicos, no período entre 1991 e 2002. As análises revelaram que os professores publicam mais artigos em autoria compartilhada do que individual. Não foi encontrada relação entre o aumento da produtividade e um número maior de colaboradores, pois a taxa de produtividade e a taxa de autores por artigo não apresentam a mesma tendência; ou seja, o número de artigos publicados cresceu enquanto que o número de colaboradores permaneceu constante no período estudado. As análises de redes sociais revelaram uma configuração em torno dos professores mais produtivos.