Travel bans and scientific mobility: utility of asymmetry and affinity indexes to inform science policy

Zaida Chinchilla-Rodríguez (), Yi Bu (), Nicolás Robinson-García (), Rodrigo Costas () and Cassidy R. Sugimoto ()
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Zaida Chinchilla-Rodríguez: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Yi Bu: Indiana University Bloomington
Nicolás Robinson-García: Georgia Institute of Technology
Rodrigo Costas: Leiden University
Cassidy R. Sugimoto: Indiana University Bloomington

Scientometrics, 2018, vol. 116, issue 1, No 28, 569-590

Abstract: Abstract This study explores the international profiles in collaboration and mobility of countries included in the so-called “travel bans” implemented by US President Trump as executive order in 2017. The objective of this research is to analyze the exchange of knowledge between countries and the relative importance of specific countries in order to inform evidence-based science policy. The work serves as a proof-of-concept of the utility of asymmetry and affinity indexes for collaboration and mobility. Comparative analyses of these indicators can be useful for informing immigration policies and motivating collaboration and mobility relationships—emphasizing the importance of geographic and cultural similarities. Egocentric and relational perspectives are analyzed to provide various lenses on the importance of countries. Our analysis suggests that comparisons of collaboration and mobility from an affinity perspective can identify discrepancies between levels of collaboration and mobility. This approach can inform international immigration policies and, if extended, demonstrate potential partnerships at several levels of analysis (e.g., institutional, sectoral, state/province).

Keywords: International collaboration; Mobility; US travel ban; Similarity measures; Association strength; Science policy; 94; Information; and; communication (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D8 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11192-018-2738-2

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