Impact beyond commercialisation: exploring knowledge area variations in academic engagement with industry
基于欧洲33国3153名学者的数据，研究医学、理工、社科人文领域在学术与产业合作中的参与差异，发现学者信念、能力及大学背景影响合作方式，推动超越传统商业化的更全面学术影响模式。
Abstract Universities are increasingly expected to engage with external stakeholders beyond traditional research and education. This “third mission” is driven by factors like policy pressures, funding needs, and graduate employability. University-Business Collaboration (UBC) has emerged as a key form of engagement, fostering innovation, regional development, and job creation. Prior studies focus on a narrow vision for engagement activities, primarily on research and commercialisation, which excludes many more academics than it includes, to the detriment of academia. Moreover, some of the studies control for knowledge area, however, limited research focuses specifically on these knowledge areas, which have a large impact on the way in which academics create impact across a broad range of UBC activities in education, research and management. Using a large European dataset (3153 academics, 33 countries), this research explores academic engagement through UBC across medical sciences, technology & engineering, and social sciences & humanities. Specifically, the study deepen how individual factors such as academics’ beliefs and capabilities, as well as the university context, influence UBC engagement. Statistical analyses reveal potential variations in how disciplines engage and create impact. The findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of UBC, potentially moving the conversation beyond traditional commercialization models towards a more holistic and transformative approach, which involves a much larger segment of the academic population. This research also lays the groundwork for future studies to explore a broader and more inclusive model of academic impact through engagement with industry and through UBC partnerships.