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The importance of geographical distance to different types of R&D collaboration in the pharmaceutical industry

Bignami, Francesca ; Mattsson, Pauline LU and Hoekman, Jarno (2020) In Industry and Innovation 27(5). p.513-537
Abstract

Innovation within companies is generated by a combination of different types of knowledge from external and geographically dispersed sources. Although the geographical dimension of collaboration has previously been investigated, studies have not distinguished between different types of knowledge involved in collaboration. This article analyses how the number of collaborations between pharmaceutical multinational companies (MNCs) and external organizations is affected by geographical distance, distinguishing between four knowledge types: basic science, clinical science, core knowledge, and exploration knowledge. We use co-publications as a proxy for collaborations. Our results show that collaborations in basic science and core knowledge... (More)

Innovation within companies is generated by a combination of different types of knowledge from external and geographically dispersed sources. Although the geographical dimension of collaboration has previously been investigated, studies have not distinguished between different types of knowledge involved in collaboration. This article analyses how the number of collaborations between pharmaceutical multinational companies (MNCs) and external organizations is affected by geographical distance, distinguishing between four knowledge types: basic science, clinical science, core knowledge, and exploration knowledge. We use co-publications as a proxy for collaborations. Our results show that collaborations in basic science and core knowledge areas are more negatively affected by geographical distance than collaborations within clinical science and exploration knowledge areas. This suggests that the importance of geographic proximity depends on the type of knowledge that is being transferred in R&D collaborations. Our results have implications for companies´ collaboration strategies and their choices for the R&D sites´ location.

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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
031, 032, geographical proximity, knowledge, L65, pharmaceutical industry, R&D collaboration
in
Industry and Innovation
volume
27
issue
5
pages
25 pages
publisher
Routledge
external identifiers
  • scopus:85060035761
ISSN
1366-2716
DOI
10.1080/13662716.2018.1561361
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
01f80367-64ee-4892-ba3d-a5a142bb8bbd
date added to LUP
2019-01-29 08:43:18
date last changed
2024-02-14 15:09:15
@article{01f80367-64ee-4892-ba3d-a5a142bb8bbd,
  abstract     = {{<p>Innovation within companies is generated by a combination of different types of knowledge from external and geographically dispersed sources. Although the geographical dimension of collaboration has previously been investigated, studies have not distinguished between different types of knowledge involved in collaboration. This article analyses how the number of collaborations between pharmaceutical multinational companies (MNCs) and external organizations is affected by geographical distance, distinguishing between four knowledge types: basic science, clinical science, core knowledge, and exploration knowledge. We use co-publications as a proxy for collaborations. Our results show that collaborations in basic science and core knowledge areas are more negatively affected by geographical distance than collaborations within clinical science and exploration knowledge areas. This suggests that the importance of geographic proximity depends on the type of knowledge that is being transferred in R&amp;D collaborations. Our results have implications for companies´ collaboration strategies and their choices for the R&amp;D sites´ location.</p>}},
  author       = {{Bignami, Francesca and Mattsson, Pauline and Hoekman, Jarno}},
  issn         = {{1366-2716}},
  keywords     = {{031; 032; geographical proximity; knowledge; L65; pharmaceutical industry; R&D collaboration}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{5}},
  pages        = {{513--537}},
  publisher    = {{Routledge}},
  series       = {{Industry and Innovation}},
  title        = {{The importance of geographical distance to different types of R&D collaboration in the pharmaceutical industry}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13662716.2018.1561361}},
  doi          = {{10.1080/13662716.2018.1561361}},
  volume       = {{27}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}