Structure and dynamics of research groups

Authors

  • Jesús Rey Rocha Centro de Información y Documentación Científica (CINDOC) y Red CTI de Estudios Políticos, Económicos y Sociales de la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
  • María José Martín Sempere Centro de Información y Documentación Científica (CINDOC) y Red CTI de Estudios Políticos, Económicos y Sociales de la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
  • Jesús Sebastián Centro de Información y Documentación Científica (CINDOC) y Red CTI de Estudios Políticos, Económicos y Sociales de la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3989/arbor.2008.i732.219

Keywords:

Research organization, Research groups, Research Teams

Abstract


The importance of associability is being increasingly stated when the present ways of production of the knowledge are analyzed. Different organizational levels exist in the context of scientific research. Among them, research groups constitute one of the most generalized modalities of association. In this article we analyze conceptual and practical aspects which are considered when it comes to identify the nature and characteristics of research groups, as well as their differences with other modalities of scientific association, such as research teams. We emphasize the functional and dynamic character of research groups, which go through different stages in their evolution. We conclude that research groups must be considered as functional organizational units, instead than structural units. This has important consequences for the policies of promotion of research groups and for the consideration of groups on the part of research institutions.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

Jesús Rey Rocha, Centro de Información y Documentación Científica (CINDOC) y Red CTI de Estudios Políticos, Económicos y Sociales de la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)

References

Bar-Tal, D. (1996): “Las creencias grupales como expresión de la identidad social”, en: Morales, J. F. et al. (eds.). Identidad Social. Aproximaciones psicosociales a los grupos y a las relaciones entre grupos, Valencia, Promolibro, pp. 256-285.

Blackwell, G. W. (1954/1955): “Multidisciplinary Team Research”, Social Forces, 33(1-4): 367-374.

Bush, G. P. y Hattery, L. H. (1956): “Teamwork and creativity in research”, Administrative Science Quarterly, 1(3): 361-372. doi:10.2307/2390929

Carayol, N. y Matt, M. (2004): “Does research organization influence academic production? Laboratory level evidence from a large European university”, Research Policy, 33: 1081-1102. doi:10.1016/j.respol.2004.03.004

Cohen, J. E. (1991): “Size, age and productivity of scientific and technical research groups”, Scientometrics, 20(3): 395-416.

Cohen, S. G. y Bailey, D. E. (1997): “What makes team work: group effectiveness research from the shop floor to the executive suite”, Journal of Management, 23(3): 239-290. doi:10.1177/014920639702300303

Cole, J. R. y Cole, S. (1972): “The Ortega Hypothesis”, Science, 178(October 27): 368-375.

Dailey, R. C. (1978): “The role of team and task characteristics in R&D team collaborative problem solving and productivity”, Management Science, 24(15): 1579-1588.

De Hemptinne, Y. y Andrews, F. M. (1979): “The international comparative study on the organization and performance of research units: an overview”, en Andrews, F. M. (ed.), Scientific Productivity: The Effectiveness of Research Groups in Six Countries, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, Paris, UNESCO, pp. 3-16.

De Luis Carnicer, M. P.; Martínez Sánchez, A.; Pérez Pérez, M. y Vela Jiménez, M. J. (2005): “Team empowerment: an empirical study in Spanish University R&D teams”, International Journal of Human Resources Development and Management, 5(1): 69-84.

Etzkowitz, H. (1992): “Individual investigators and their research groups”, Minerva, 30: 28-50. doi:10.1007/BF01096395

Garland, J.; Jones, H. y Kolodny, R. L. (1973): “A model for stages of development in social work groups”, en: Bernstein, S. (ed.), Exploration in group work, Boston, Milford House, pp. 17-71.

Gibbons, M.; Limoges, C.; Nowotny, H.; Schwartzmann, S.; Scott, P. y Trow, M. (1994): The new production of knowledge, Londres, Sage. Johnston, R. (1994): “Effects of resource concentration on research performance”, Higher Education, 29: 25-37.

Jordan, J. M.; Meador, M. y Walters, S. J. K. (1989): “Academic research productivity, department size, and organization: Further results”, Economics of Education Review, 8(24): 345-352. doi:10.1016/0272-7757(89)90020-4

Katzenbach, J. R. y Smith, D. K. (1993): The wisdom of teams: Creating the high performance organization, Boston, MA, Harvard Business School Press.

Knorr, K. D.; Mittermeir, G.; Aichholzer, G. y Waller, G. (1979): “Individual publication productivity as a social position effect in academic and industrial research units”, en: Andrews, F. M. (ed.), Scientific Productivity. The effectiveness of Research Groups in Six Countries, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, Paris, UNESCO, pp. 55-94.

Krohn, W. y Küppers, G. (1990): “Science as a self-organizing system. Outline of a theoretical model”, en: Krohn, W.; Küppers, G. y Nowotny, H. (eds.), Selforganization -Portrait of a scientific revolution, vol. XIV, Yearbook in the Sociology of the Sciences, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, Kluwer Academic Publishers, pp. 208-222.

Lazega, E.; Mounier, L.; Jourda, M. T. y Stofer, R. (2006): “Organizational vs. personal social capital in scientists’ performance: A multi-level network study of elite French cancer researchers (1996-1998)”, Scientometrics, 67(1): 27-44.

Michel, J. G. y Hambrick, D. C. (1992): “Diversification posture and top management team characteristics”, The Academy of Management Journal, 35(1): 9-37. doi:10.2307/256471

Moreland, R. L. (1987): “The formation of small groups”, en Hendrick, C. (ed.), Group Processes, Londres, Sage, pp. 80-110.

Moreland, R. L. y Levine, J. M. (2001): “Socialization in organizations and work groups”, en: Turner, M. E. (ed.), Groups at Work: theory and research, Mahwah, New Jersey, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, pp. 25-65.

Nederhof, A. J.; van Raan, A. F. J. (1993): “A bibliometric analysis of six economic research groups: a comparison with peer review”, Research Policy, 22: 353-368. doi:10.1016/0048-7333(93)90005-3

Nowotny, H. (1989): “Individual autonomy and autonomy of science: the place of the individual in the research system”, en: Cozzens, S. E. et al. (eds.), The research system in transition, NATO Advanced Science Institutes Series D: Behavioural and Social Sciences, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, Kluwer Academic Publishers, pp. 331-344.

Quin, J.; Lancaster, F. W. y Allen, B. (1997): “Types and levels of collaboration in interdisciplinary research in the sciences”, Journal of the American Society for Information Science, 48(10): 893-916. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1097-4571(199710)48:10<893::AID-ASI5>3.0.CO;2-X

Reeves, E. T. (1971): La dinámica del comportamiento de grupos, México, Editora Técnica, S.A., 352 pp. Primera edición en español de la obra del mismo autor The dynamics of group behavior, Ed. American Management Association, 1970.

Rey Rocha, J.; Garzón García, B. y Martín Sempere, M. J. (2006): “Scientists’ performance and consolidation of research teams in Biology and Biomedicine at the Spanish Council for Scientific Research”, Scientometrics, 69(2): 183-212.

Rey Rocha, J.; Garzón García, B. y Martín Sempere, M. J. (2007): “Exploring social integration as a determinant of research activity, performance and prestige of scientists. Empirical evidence in the Biology and Biomedicine field”, Scientometrics (en prensa).

Sebastián, J. (2000a): “La cultura de la cooperación en la I+D+i”, Espacios. Revista venezolana de gestión tecnológica, Caracas, 21(2): 165-180.

Sebastián, J. (2000b): “Las redes de cooperación como modelo organizativo y funcional para la I+D”, Redes, Buenos Aires, 7(15): 97-111.

Stankiewicz, R. (1979): “The size and age of Swedish academic research groups and their scientific performance”, en: Andrews, F. M. (ed.), Scientific Productivity. The effectiveness of Research Groups in Six Countries, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, Paris, UNESCO, pp. 191-222.

Tuckman, B. W. y Jensen, M. A. C. (1997): “Stages of small group development revisited”, Group and organizational studies, 2: 419-427.

Turner, J. C.; Hogg, M. A.; Oakes, P. J.; Reicher, S. D. y Wetherell, M. S. (1987): Rediscovering the social group: A selfcategorization theory, Oxford, Blackwell (versión española en Editorial Morata, Madrid, 1989).

Von Tunzelman, N.; Ranga, M.; Martin, B. y Geuna A. (2003): The effects of size on research performance: A SPRU review, Brighton, UK, SPRU, Science and Technology Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex.

Wallmark, J. T.; Eckerstein, S.; Langered, B. y Holmqvist, H. E. S. (1973): “The increase in efficiency with size of research teams”, IEE Transactions on Engineering Management, EM-20 (3): 80-86.

Worchel, S. (1998): “Social identity and individual productivity within groups”, British Journal of Social Psychology, 37: 389-413.

Worchel, S.; Coutant-Sassic, D. y Grossman, M. (1992): “A developmental appoach to group dynamics: a model and illustrative research”, en: Worchel, S.; Wood, W. y Simpson, J. A. (eds.), Group Process and Productivity, Newbury Park, CA, Sage.

Ziman, J. (1989): “Restructuring Academic Science”, Science Policy Support Group Concept Paper, n.º 8, London, SGPS.

Downloads

Published

2008-08-30

How to Cite

Rey Rocha, J., Martín Sempere, M. J., & Sebastián, J. (2008). Structure and dynamics of research groups. Arbor, 184(732), 743–757. https://doi.org/10.3989/arbor.2008.i732.219

Issue

Section

Articles