Differences in collaboration structures and impact among prominent researchers in Europe and North America

TL;DR

This study compares collaboration network structures and research impact of prominent scientists in Europe and North America, revealing regional differences in network density, decentralization, and publication impact.

Contribution

It provides a systematic comparison of regional collaboration patterns and their effects on research impact among prominent researchers.

Findings

European researchers have denser collaboration networks.

North American researchers achieve higher impact publications.

Repeated collaborations reduce synergistic effects among prominent researchers.

Abstract

Scientists collaborate through intricate networks, which impact the quality and scope of their research. At the same time, funding and institutional arrangements, as well as scientific and political cultures, affect the structure of collaboration networks. Since such arrangements and cultures differ across regions in the world in systematic ways, we surmise that collaboration networks and impact should also differ systematically across regions. To test this, we compare the structure of collaboration networks among prominent researchers in North America and Europe. We find that prominent researchers in Europe establish denser collaboration networks, whereas those in North-America establish more decentralized networks. We also find that the impact of the publications of prominent researchers in North America is significantly higher than for those in Europe, both when they collaborate with other prominent researchers and when they do not. Although Europeans collaborate with other prominent researchers more often, which increases their impact, we also find that repeated collaboration among prominent researchers decreases the synergistic effect of collaborating.