Proximity influences collaboration. This makes proximity a logical starting point for management and policy intervention in order to stimulate collaboration. In this paper, we analyze three types of proximity, namely organizational, technological and geographical proximity. The role of these proximities in stimulating collaboration is estimated with the help of a sample of European nanotechnology publications. While organizational proximity is significant it is the least important of the three kinds of proximity. Geographical proximity is most significant in statistical terms and technological proximity has the highest magnitude of effect. Consequently, the latter lends itself most for management and policy intervention. 1 Abstract:Collaborations are particularly important for the development and deployment of technology. We analyze the influence of organizational, technological and geographical proximity on European nanotechnology collaborations with the help of a publication dataset and additional geographical information. While organizational proximity influences collaboration only indirectly geographical and technological proximity do so directly. Geographical proximity is most significant in statistical terms and technological proximity has the highest magnitude of effect. Consequently, the latter lends itself most for management and policy interventions, e.g. providing information on technological specialization of potential partners or on project management tools. JEL Classification:O33, O14, R12

Previous studies investigating proximity and collaboration have not clarified personal elements, such as working or communication style. Here, we show that personal proximity—close similarity in terms of personal traits and behavioral patterns—substantially affects the whole life cycle of research collaborations. We conduct a multi-case study of Dutch nanotechnology researchers. We select our interviewees through a bibliometric analysis and focus on the most central Dutch nanotechnology researchers in the global network. Our results reveal that social proximity and temporary geographical proximity have indirect effects enabling potential partners to assess their personal proximity. Sufficient levels of personal proximity often make or break the deal, provided that partners’ cognitive and organizational proximity—which are major drivers of research collaborations—suffice. Introducing personal proximity to analyze research collaborations puts previous findings on proximity dimensions’ effect on collaboration in a new perspective.

Simulation models have become increasingly popular in economics in the last two decades, because they can deal with a wide range of research questions. The set-up and analysis of simulation models can range from very specific to very general and can be underpinned by different combinations of theoretical considerations and empirical data. We offer a taxonomy of existing simulation approaches and show how their results can be used to explain observed economic features, examine economic systems and predict future economic processes. Moreover, we offer a new type of method that helps to better exploit empirical findings in simulation models.

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