Measuring International Scientific Collaboration of Interdisciplinary Sciences from the Perspective of Different Collaboration Models

Yu Yunlong, Ye Yi, Yue Xiaoxu, Qiu Junping

Knowledge Management Forum ›› 2026, Vol. 11 ›› Issue (4) : 366-380.

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Knowledge Management Forum ›› 2026, Vol. 11 ›› Issue (4) : 366-380. DOI: 10.13266/j.issn.2095-5472.2026.031  CSTR: 32306.14.j.issn.2095-5472.2026.031

Measuring International Scientific Collaboration of Interdisciplinary Sciences from the Perspective of Different Collaboration Models

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Abstract

[Purpose/Significance] Increasing in interdisciplinary science and international cooperation to solve global complex problems, existing research lacks an integrated framework for measuring the trends of interdisciplinary international scientific collaboration that incorporates multi-dimensional indicators and distinguishes different collaboration patterns. [Method/Process] This study differentiated three collaboration patterns, including no international cooperation, bilateral international cooperation, and multilateral international cooperation. It integrated intensity, breadth, impact, and disciplinary diversity of international collaboration to construct a measurement indicator system for interdisciplinary international scientific collaboration trends. An empirical analysis was conducted using the field of climate change as a case study. [Result/Conclusion] The findings reveal that the intensity and breadth of international collaboration of global climate change research have continued to grow, however, the growth trend has significantly slowed down after 2017, with a decline in collaboration intensity between China and U.S. Multilateral international collaboration significantly enhances academic influence (average CNCI of 1.55), far exceeding bilateral international cooperation (1.02) and no international cooperation (0.85). Core disciplines (Environmental & Ecological Sciences, Earth & Planetary Sciences) in the field of climate change have high international collaborative publication volumes but relatively low collaborative activity levels (RSI values of -0.003 and 0.05, respectively). International collaborations of both Sino-U.S. and Sino-European are China-led with uneven disciplinary distributions. Based on these findings, we propose targeted policy recommendations in four areas: establishing long-term and stable collaboration mechanisms, prioritizing support for multilateral collaboration, implementing differentiated disciplinary strategies, and optimizing regional layouts.

Key words

interdisciplinary sciences / international scientific collaboration / evolution / collaboration model / climate change

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Yu Yunlong , Ye Yi , Yue Xiaoxu , et al. Measuring International Scientific Collaboration of Interdisciplinary Sciences from the Perspective of Different Collaboration Models[J]. Knowledge Management Forum. 2026, 11(4): 366-380 https://doi.org/10.13266/j.issn.2095-5472.2026.031

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Funding

special fund for basic research in higher education institutions of research project of Zhejiang Federation of Humanities and Social Sciences titled “Measurement of international research collaboration based on Theory of Asymmetric Interdependence”(26NDJC040YBMS)
youth project of National Natural Science Foundation of China titled “Synergistic Evolution Mechanism and Path Optimization of Multiple Actors in Digital Innovation: Based on the Perspective of Social Experiments”(72404074)
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