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An exploration of collaborative scientific production at MIT through spatial organization and institutional affiliation

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  • Matthew Claudel
  • Emanuele Massaro
  • Paolo Santi
  • Fiona Murray
  • Carlo Ratti

Abstract

Academic research is increasingly cross-disciplinary and collaborative, between and within institutions. In this context, what is the role and relevance of an individual’s spatial position on a campus? We examine the collaboration patterns of faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, through their academic output (papers and patents), and their organizational structures (institutional affiliation and spatial configuration) over a 10-year time span. An initial comparison of output types reveals: 1. diverging trends in the composition of collaborative teams over time (size, faculty versus non-faculty, etc.); and 2. substantively different patterns of cross-building and cross-disciplinary collaboration. We then construct a multi-layered network of authors, and find two significant features of collaboration on campus: 1. a network topology and community structure that reveals spatial versus institutional collaboration bias; and 2. a persistent relationship between proximity and collaboration, well fit with an exponential decay model. This relationship is consistent for both papers and patents, and present also in exclusively cross-disciplinary work. These insights contribute an architectural dimension to the field of scientometrics, and take a first step toward empirical space-planning policy that supports collaboration within institutions.

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  • Matthew Claudel & Emanuele Massaro & Paolo Santi & Fiona Murray & Carlo Ratti, 2017. "An exploration of collaborative scientific production at MIT through spatial organization and institutional affiliation," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(6), pages 1-22, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0179334
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179334
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Igor Linkov & Sankar Basu & Cathleen Fisher & Nancy Jackson & Adam C. Jones & Maija M. Kuklja & Benjamin D. Trump, 2016. "Diplomacy for science: strategies to promote international collaboration," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 36(4), pages 331-334, December.
    2. Jason Owen-Smith & Walter W. Powell, 2004. "Knowledge Networks as Channels and Conduits: The Effects of Spillovers in the Boston Biotechnology Community," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 15(1), pages 5-21, February.
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    1. Dong, Xiaofang & Zheng, Siqi & Kahn, Matthew E., 2020. "The role of transportation speed in facilitating high skilled teamwork across cities," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    2. Alfonso Ávila-Robinson & Cristian Mejia & Shintaro Sengoku, 2021. "Are bibliometric measures consistent with scientists’ perceptions? The case of interdisciplinarity in research," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 126(9), pages 7477-7502, September.
    3. Xiaofang Dong & Siqi Zheng & Matthew E. Kahn, 2018. "The Role of Transportation Speed in Facilitating High Skilled Teamwork," NBER Working Papers 24539, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Clovia Hamilton & Simon P. Philbin, 2020. "Knowledge Based View of University Tech Transfer—A Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-28, September.
    5. Pinto, Pablo E. & Vallone, Andres & Honores, Guillermo, 2019. "The structure of collaboration networks: Findings from three decades of co-invention patents in Chile," Journal of Informetrics, Elsevier, vol. 13(4).
    6. Gokan,Toshitaka & Kichko,Sergei & Matheson,Jesse A & Thisse,Jacques-François, 2022. "How the rise of teleworking will reshape labor markets and cities?," IDE Discussion Papers 868, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO).
    7. Behrens, Kristian & Kichko, Sergei & Thisse, Jacques-Francois, 2024. "Working from home: Too much of a good thing?," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    8. Xiaofang Dong & Siqi Zheng & Matthew E. Kahn, 2018. "The Role of Transportation Speed in Facilitating High Skilled Teamwork," NBER Working Papers 24539, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Ducharme, Lori J. & Fujimoto, Kayo & Kuo, Jacky & Stewart, Jonathan & Taylor, Bruce & Schneider, John, 2024. "Collaboration and growth in a large research cooperative: A network analytic approach," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 102(C).
    10. Fan, Ying, 2023. "Collaborative integration, workplace flexibility and scholarly productivity: Evidence from the COVID-19 outbreak," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 1-15.
    11. Kairui Zheng & Yijie Li & Xiaohui Xin, 2022. "The Influencing Mechanism of High-Speed Rail on Innovation: Firm-Level Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-26, December.
    12. Bryan Stephens & Jonathon N. Cummings, 2021. "Knowledge creation through collaboration: The role of shared institutional affiliations and physical proximity," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 72(11), pages 1337-1353, November.

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