Special Issue "Transnational Research Collaboration and Its Impact"

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Education and Approaches".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2021.

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Jinyuan Ma
E-Mail
Guest Editor
Center for Higher Education Research, Southern University of Science and Technology (CHER/SUSTech), Shenzhen, China
Interests: liberal arts education in science and engineering universities; societal impact and assessment of transnational research collaboration; the role of universities in transnational and regional innovation systems
Dr. Chuanyi Wang
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Education, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Interests: graduate education; educational evaluation
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals
Dr. Yuzhuo Cai
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Management and Business, Tampere University, 00014 Tampere, Finland
Interests: higher education policy and management; innovation studies; internationlisation of higher education
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleague,

Along with emerging global innovation networks (Howells, 2019; Lin & Plechero, 2019; J. Liu, Chaminade, & Asheim, 2013) or transnational innovation ecosystems (Cai, 2018; Cai, Ferrer, & Lastra, 2019), transnational research cooperation is not only becoming popular but also complex (Janssens, Maddux, & Nguyen, 2019; Lin & Plechero, 2019). Transnational research cooperation is not merely about researchers from different nations collaborating with each other in conducting research and writing research papers; it is also concerned with related policy frameworks, funding structures, motivations for career development, etc. Moreover, transnational research goes beyond the sector of higher education; it also works across sectors such as university and industry (Huang & Chenlu, 2018; Y. Liu, Deng, Wei, Ying, & Tian, 2019; Ma, 2019). In contrast to dramatic changes in transnational research cooperation in terms of both quantity and quality, little research has been done in exploring the nature of the phenomenon.

More scarce still are studies on the societal impact of transnational research cooperation. In the discourse on research collaboration, we take societal impact to include societal benefits, societal quality, societal relevance, knowledge transfer, public values, usefulness, and third-stream activities (Bornmann, 2013). Although the shared understanding of the prominent role of the university in national or regional innovation is reflected in both higher education research and innovation system studies (Cai, 2017; Kang, Zhao, Song, & Zhuang, 2019; Kempton, 2019; Lyu, Wu, Hu, & Huang, 2019; Reichert, 2019), surprisingly little research attention has been paid to the university’s societal engagement in a transnational context. In the literature, there is an absence of attempts to explain the broader socio-economic role of transnational cooperation (Cai et al., 2019), e.g., for sustainable development goals (United Nations, 2015). In particular, theoretical understandings of the underlying underpinning mechanisms of the societal impact of transnational research cooperation have been lacking.   

This Special Issue calls for papers to address the research gaps. We welcome papers that contribute to the discussion from theoretical, methodological, or empirical perspectives and are relevant both to academic communities interested in the theme as well as policy and managerial audiences.  Specifically, we invite research contributions to discuss the following issues, albeit not in a strict (exclusive) sense:

  • Various forms of transitional research collaboration
  • The changing nature of and challenges in transnational research collaboration
  • Higher education, science & technology, and research policies addressing responsible research, innovation, and research collaboration
  • Theoretical understandings of the societal impact of transnational research collaboration
  • Assessment mechanisms/evaluation tools underlying the societal impact of transnational research projects/collaboration
  • New methodologies in the new research agenda

Dr. Jinyuan Ma
Dr. Chuanyi Wang
Prof. Yuzhuo Cai
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All papers will be peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

References

Bornmann, L. (2013). What is societal impact of research and how can it be assessed? A literature survey. Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 64(2), 217-233.

Cai, Y. (2017). From an analytical framework for understanding the innovation process in higher education to an emerging research field of innovations in higher education. Review of Higher Education, 40(4), 585-616. doi:10.1353/rhe.2017.0023

Cai, Y. (2018). Towards a socially responsible entrepreneurial university: Conceptual and analytical framework building. SPIRAL, 2018, 1-4.

Cai, Y., Ferrer, B. R., & Lastra, J. L. M. (2019). Building University-Industry Co-Innovation Networks in Transnational Innovation Ecosystems: Towards a Transdisciplinary Approach of Integrating Social Sciences and Artificial Intelligence. Sustainability, 11(17), 1-23. doi:10.3390/su11174633

Howells, J. (2019). Global innovation: innovation systems in open and distributed networks. The Handbook of Globalisation, 92.

Huang, Y., & Chenlu, Z. (2018). Research on the Cooperation of Science and Technology Innovation between Chinese Research Universities and Multinational Enterprises in the Context of Globalization. Science and Technology Management Research (in Chinese), 38(21), 138-144.

Janssens, M., Maddux, W. W., & Nguyen, T. (2019). Globalization: Current issues and future research directions. Negotiation and Conflict Management Research, 12(2), 174-185.

Kang, W., Zhao, S., Song, W., & Zhuang, T. (2019). Triple helix in the science and technology innovation centers of China from the perspective of mutual information: a comparative study between Beijing and Shanghai. Scientometrics, 118(3), 921-940.

Kempton, L. (2019). Wishful thinking? Towards a more realistic role for universities in regional innovation policy. European Planning Studies, 1-18.

Lin, J., & Plechero, M. (2019). Global innovation networks for Chinese high-tech small and medium enterprises: the supportive role of highly skilled migrants and returnees. International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, 11(2), 140-154.

Liu, J., Chaminade, C., & Asheim, B. (2013). The Geography and Structure of Global Innovation Networks: A Knowledge Base Perspective. European Planning Studies, 21(9), 1456-1473. doi:10.1080/09654313.2012.755842

Liu, Y., Deng, P., Wei, J., Ying, Y., & Tian, M. (2019). International R&D alliances and innovation for emerging market multinationals: Roles of environmental turbulence and knowledge transfer. Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing.

Lyu, L., Wu, W., Hu, H., & Huang, R. (2019). An evolving regional innovation network: collaboration among industry, university, and research institution in China’s first technology hub. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 44(3), 659-680.

Ma, J. (2019). Developing Joint R&D Institutes between Chinese Universities and International Enterprises in China’s Innovation System: A Case at Tsinghua University. Sustainability, 11(24), 1-25.

Reichert, S. (2019). The role of universities in regional innovation ecosystems. Brussels: European University Association Study. https://eua. eu/downloads/publications/eua% 20innovation% 20ecosystem% 20report, 2020, 19-13.

United Nations. (2015). Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. New York: United Nations

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Article
A Review of Global Collaboration on COVID-19 Research during the Pandemic in 2020
Sustainability 2021, 13(14), 7618; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13147618 - 07 Jul 2021
Viewed by 623
Abstract
In response to the COVID-19 crisis, which has become a severe threat to the health and sustainability of human life, scholars have published numerous research results. Although the importance of international research collaboration has been highlighted as a means of overcoming this global [...] Read more.
In response to the COVID-19 crisis, which has become a severe threat to the health and sustainability of human life, scholars have published numerous research results. Although the importance of international research collaboration has been highlighted as a means of overcoming this global crisis, research on this particular problem has been lacking. Therefore, this study focused on the response of academia to COVID-19 by examining the collaboration between international research, and its impact. This study extracted data from Scopus, sampling articles and reviews published in 2020. By analyzing scenarios by country and international research collaboration based on data on authors’ nationalities and the research areas of documents, this study revealed that the United States and China contributed the most. In all countries, most research was conducted on medicine. European and American countries demonstrated significant interest in the social sciences and Asian countries in the life sciences. Furthermore, some countries, including Belgium and Pakistan, extended their research interests through international research collaboration. The results of this study highlight the importance of international research collaboration across various areas by overcoming the regional imbalance in intercountry collaboration and the concentration on a limited scope of subjects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Transnational Research Collaboration and Its Impact)
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Article
Patterns of the Network of Cross-Border University Research Collaboration in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area
Sustainability 2020, 12(17), 6846; https://doi.org/10.3390/su12176846 - 23 Aug 2020
Viewed by 1127
Abstract
This study analyzes the patterns of university co-authorship networks in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area. It also examines the quality and subject distribution of co-authored articles within these networks. Social network analysis is used to outline the structure and evolution of the [...] Read more.
This study analyzes the patterns of university co-authorship networks in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area. It also examines the quality and subject distribution of co-authored articles within these networks. Social network analysis is used to outline the structure and evolution of the networks that have produced co-authored articles at universities in the Greater Bay Area from 2014 to 2018, at both regional and institutional levels. Field-weighted citation impact (FWCI) is used to analyze the quality and citation impact of co-authored articles in different subject fields. The findings of the study reveal that university co-authorship networks in the Greater Bay Area are still dispersed, and their disciplinary development is unbalanced. The study also finds that, while the research areas covered by high-quality co-authored articles fit the strategic needs of technological innovation and industrial distribution in the Greater Bay Area, high-quality research collaboration in the humanities and social sciences is insufficient. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Transnational Research Collaboration and Its Impact)
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