IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/techno/v139y2025ics0166497224001780.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

In-between identity work: Transcending boundaries in university-industry collaboration

Author

Listed:
  • Ollila, Susanne

Abstract

Scholarly literature has scarcely addressed the intricacies surrounding individual work identity and its ramifications within the context of university-industry collaboration (UIC). In an endeavour to address this lacuna and enhance our comprehension, this study explicates how individuals engaging in UIC experience identity struggles and perform identity work by constructing and reconstructing their self-conception and the notion of what they can do. A single case study, of a research centre situated in Northern Europe with prolonged collaborative effort, was used as the methodological approach. The findings proffer insights into micro-foundations of UIC by outlining various ways individuals conduct identity work to navigate and bridge cognitive and behavioural boundaries. This knowledge disputes the prevailing view that UIC related identity tensions and struggles should be resolved at the organizational level. Instead, identity work is shown to be crucial in harnessing these struggles to support the knowledge exchange and creation, necessary for innovation. An emergent model of in-between identity work is generated demonstrating how individuals perform identity work at the intersection of organizational boundaries allowing them to embody both collective and individual identities, fostering belonging while preserving the cognitive and institutional variety.

Suggested Citation

  • Ollila, Susanne, 2025. "In-between identity work: Transcending boundaries in university-industry collaboration," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:techno:v:139:y:2025:i:c:s0166497224001780
    DOI: 10.1016/j.technovation.2024.103128
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166497224001780
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.technovation.2024.103128?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. He, Vivianna Fang & von Krogh, Georg & Sirén, Charlotta & Gersdorf, Thomas, 2021. "Asymmetries between partners and the success of university-industry research collaborations," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(10).
    2. Markus Perkmann & Maureen McKelvey & Nelson Phillips, 2019. "Protecting Scientists from Gordon Gekko: How Organizations Use Hybrid Spaces to Engage with Multiple Institutional Logics," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 30(2), pages 298-318, March.
    3. Valentina Tartari & Ammon Salter & Pablo D'Este, 2012. "Crossing the Rubicon: exploring the factors that shape academics' perceptions of the barriers to working with industry," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 36(3), pages 655-677.
    4. Cynthia Hardy & Nelson Phillips & Thomas B. Lawrence, 2003. "Resources, Knowledge and Influence: The Organizational Effects of Interorganizational Collaboration," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(2), pages 321-347, March.
    5. Bruneel, Johan & D'Este, Pablo & Salter, Ammon, 2010. "Investigating the factors that diminish the barriers to university-industry collaboration," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(7), pages 858-868, September.
    6. John Seely Brown & Paul Duguid, 2001. "Knowledge and Organization: A Social-Practice Perspective," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 12(2), pages 198-213, April.
    7. O’Kane, Conor & Mangematin, Vincent & Geoghegan, Will & Fitzgerald, Ciara, 2015. "University technology transfer offices: The search for identity to build legitimacy," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(2), pages 421-437.
    8. Andrew C. Inkpen, 2000. "A note on the dynamics of learning alliances: competition, cooperation, and relative scope," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(7), pages 775-779, July.
    9. Valentina Morandi, 2013. "The management of industry–university joint research projects: how do partners coordinate and control R&D activities?," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 38(2), pages 69-92, April.
    10. Filipe M. Santos & Kathleen M. Eisenhardt, 2005. "Organizational Boundaries and Theories of Organization," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 16(5), pages 491-508, October.
    11. Conor O'Kane & Vincent Mangematin & Will Geoghegan & Ciara Fitzgerald, 2015. "University Technology Transfer offices : the search for identity to build legimacy," Post-Print hal-01072998, HAL.
    12. Henry Sauermann & Paula Stephan, 2013. "Conflicting Logics? A Multidimensional View of Industrial and Academic Science," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 24(3), pages 889-909, June.
    13. Granstrand, Ove & Holgersson, Marcus, 2020. "Innovation ecosystems: A conceptual review and a new definition," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 90.
    14. Du, Jingshu & Leten, Bart & Vanhaverbeke, Wim, 2014. "Managing open innovation projects with science-based and market-based partners," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(5), pages 828-840.
    15. Dovev Lavie & Pamela R. Haunschild & Poonam Khanna, 2012. "Organizational differences, relational mechanisms, and alliance performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(13), pages 1453-1479, December.
    16. Esther Wit-de Vries & Wilfred A. Dolfsma & Henny J. Windt & M. P. Gerkema, 2019. "Knowledge transfer in university–industry research partnerships: a review," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 44(4), pages 1236-1255, August.
    17. McCabe, Angela & Parker, Rachel & Osegowitsch, Tom & Cox, Stephen, 2023. "Overcoming barriers to knowledge co-production in academic–practitioner research collaboration," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 41(2), pages 212-222.
    18. Gabriela Fernandes & David O’Sullivan, 2023. "Project management practices in major university-industry R&D collaboration programs – a case study," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(1), pages 361-391, February.
    19. Slavova, Kremena & Jong, Simcha, 2021. "University alliances and firm exploratory innovation: Evidence from therapeutic product development," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    20. Alessandro Muscio & Andrea Pozzali, 2013. "The effects of cognitive distance in university-industry collaborations: some evidence from Italian universities," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 38(4), pages 486-508, August.
    21. Jeaninne Horowitz Gassol, 2007. "The effect of university culture and stakeholders’ perceptions on university–business linking activities," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 32(5), pages 489-507, October.
    22. Perkmann, Markus & Tartari, Valentina & McKelvey, Maureen & Autio, Erkko & Broström, Anders & D’Este, Pablo & Fini, Riccardo & Geuna, Aldo & Grimaldi, Rosa & Hughes, Alan & Krabel, Stefan & Kitson, Mi, 2013. "Academic engagement and commercialisation: A review of the literature on university–industry relations," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(2), pages 423-442.
    23. Santoro, Michael D & Gopalakrishnan, Shanthi, 2001. "Relationship Dynamics between University Research Centers and Industrial Firms: Their Impact on Technology Transfer Activities," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 26(1-2), pages 163-171, January.
    24. Janice M. Beyer & David R. Hannah, 2002. "Building on the Past: Enacting Established Personal Identities in a New Work Setting," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(6), pages 636-652, December.
    25. Susanne Beck & Carsten Bergenholtz & Marcel Bogers & Tiare-Maria Brasseur & Marie Louise Conradsen & Diletta Di Marco & Andreas P. Distel & Leonhard Dobusch & Daniel Dörler & Agnes Effert & Benedikt F, 2022. "The Open Innovation in Science research field: a collaborative conceptualisation approach," Industry and Innovation, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(2), pages 136-185, February.
    26. Aimée A. Kane, 2010. "Unlocking Knowledge Transfer Potential: Knowledge Demonstrability and Superordinate Social Identity," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 21(3), pages 643-660, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Carsten Schultz & Oliver Gretsch & Alexander Kock, 2021. "The influence of shared R&D-project innovativeness perceptions on university-industry collaboration performance," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 46(4), pages 1144-1172, August.
    2. Schultz, Carsten & Gretsch, Oliver & Kock, Alexander, 2024. "The influence of shared R&D-project innovativeness perceptions on university-industry collaboration performance," Publications of Darmstadt Technical University, Institute for Business Studies (BWL) 151014, Darmstadt Technical University, Department of Business Administration, Economics and Law, Institute for Business Studies (BWL).
    3. Ankrah, Samuel & AL-Tabbaa, Omar, 2015. "Universities–industry collaboration: A systematic review," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 387-408.
    4. Borah, Dhruba & Massini, Silvia & Malik, Khaleel, 2023. "Teaching benefits of multi-helix university-industry research collaborations: Towards a holistic framework," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(8).
    5. Lascaux, Alexander, 2019. "Absorptive Capacity, Research Output Sharing, and Research Output Capture in University-Industry Partnerships," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 35(3).
    6. Lee, Hsing-fen & Miozzo, Marcela, 2024. "Beyond complementarity and substitutability? Understanding relational governance and formal contracts in university-industry collaborations for innovation," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    7. He, Vivianna Fang & von Krogh, Georg & Sirén, Charlotta & Gersdorf, Thomas, 2021. "Asymmetries between partners and the success of university-industry research collaborations," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(10).
    8. Esther Wit-de Vries & Wilfred A. Dolfsma & Henny J. Windt & M. P. Gerkema, 2019. "Knowledge transfer in university–industry research partnerships: a review," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 44(4), pages 1236-1255, August.
    9. Yung-Chi Shen, 2017. "Identifying the key barriers and their interrelationships impeding the university technology transfer in Taiwan: a multi-stakeholder perspective," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 51(6), pages 2865-2884, November.
    10. Laura Kreiling & Ahmed Bounfour, 2020. "A practice-based maturity model for holistic TTO performance management: development and initial use," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 45(6), pages 1718-1747, December.
    11. Grębosz-Krawczyk Magdalena & Sowa Mateusz, 2025. "Where is the social impact? Key barriers to knowledge valorisation," Marketing of Scientific and Research Organizations, Sciendo, vol. 55(1), pages 1-16.
    12. Nasirov, Shukhrat & Joshi, Amol M., 2023. "Minding the communications gap: How can universities signal the availability and value of their scientific knowledge to commercial organizations?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(9).
    13. Albats, Ekaterina & Alexander, Allen T. & Cunningham, James A., 2022. "Traditional, virtual, and digital intermediaries in university-industry collaboration: exploring institutional logics and bounded rationality," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).
    14. Perkmann, Markus & Salandra, Rossella & Tartari, Valentina & McKelvey, Maureen & Hughes, Alan, 2021. "Academic engagement: A review of the literature 2011-2019," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(1).
    15. Huegel, Matthias, 2024. "University scientists’ multiple goals achievement: Social capital and its impact on research performance and research commercialization," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 135(C).
    16. Lee, Kyootai & Jung, Hyun Ju, 2021. "Does TTO capability matter in commercializing university technology? Evidence from longitudinal data in South Korea," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(1).
    17. Ellen Siu, 2018. "Interorganisational collaboration in Academic Health Science Centre: A case study on King’s Health Partnership," Working Papers 40, Birkbeck Centre for Innovation Management Research, revised Feb 2021.
    18. Giuseppe Criaco & Davide Hahn & Tommaso Minola & Daniel Pittino, 2025. "The role of non-economic goals in academic spin-offs," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 50(2), pages 668-691, April.
    19. Timo Kleiner-Schaefer & Kerstin J. Schaefer, 2022. "Barriers to university–industry collaboration in an emerging market: Firm-level evidence from Turkey," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 872-905, June.
    20. Borah, Dhruba & Ellwood, Paul, 2022. "The micro-foundations of conflicts in joint university-industry laboratories," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:techno:v:139:y:2025:i:c:s0166497224001780. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01664972 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.