DISTRETTO TECNOLOGICO PER L'INGEGNERIA DEI MATERIALI POLIMERICI E COMPOSITI E STRUTTURE

Titolo: Assessing structural changes of R&D collaboration networks through Social Network Analysis: a case study

Autori: Maria Rosaria D'Esposito, Eva Milella, Laura Prota, Maria Prosperina Vitale

Rivista: Associazione Italiana di Scienze Regionali, Franco Angeli Editore

Anno di Pubblicazione: 2015

Abstract: By adopting a whole network perspective, the present study aims at describing systemic changes in the pattern of collaborative behaviours linking the organizations partaking in an Italian technological district. This methodology can be fruitfully employed to identify groups of organizations with similar behavioural patterns and to observe, in evolutionary terms, changes in the configuration of the collaboration network as a whole. The organizations within the TD are extremely heterogeneous as they include public and private research centres, firms, and local institutions sharing scientific research and technological interests. In Italy TDs are considered key drivers of innovation and growth, as well as a generators of competitiveness and inter-cluster cooperative projects. The investigation of the extent of the occurrence, outspread and stabilization of collaborative relationships is relevant insofar as it provides a measure of the systemic effects of innovation policies.