Mapping Triple Helix innovation in developing and transitional economies: webometrics, scientometrics, and informetrics

Abstract

Since Etzkowitz and Leydesdorff (1995) introduced the Triple Helix (TH) model of university-industry-government (UIG) relationships to explain structural developments in knowledge-based economies, many scholars, entrepreneurs, and administrators have attempted to extend the TH model. According to a recent special issue of Scientometrics (edited by Khan and Park 2012), the cumulative employment of the TH model in the analysis of knowledge-based economies and the application of new webometric, scientometric, and informetric research methods have provided many opportunities for stimulating intellectual discussions on the direction of the TH model and its methods. The growing importance of the TH model has led to the emergence of a rich body of theoretical and empirical research discussing new methods for knowledge creation. In particular, the emergence of research on the TH model in Asian contexts has been noteworthy (Meyer 2012). The beauty of TH research lies in its diversity and innovativeness, reflecting the dynamic characteristics of the approach. The TH model and its indicators have been evolving and thus have invited scholars to suggest new ways to operationalize UIG relations in various contexts. The Center for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) of Leiden University in the Netherlands has recently started producing an indicator for measuring university-industry research collaboration (UIRC) since 2009 (http://www.socialsciences.leiden.edu/cwts/research/uircscoreboard-2011.html#introducing-uirc-2011). UIRC is an internationally comparative index based on coauthored papers using Thomson Reuters’ Web of Science (WoS) database. UIRC (in this case, university-industry co-publication) is calculated based on the number of research papers published jointly by universities and private organizations such as manufacturing/service firms and for-profit research organizations. The 2011 edition was the first to present separate results for universities worldwide and for those in Europe.