Situation of International Collaborations in Japan

Evidence from Bibliometric Analyses and Surveys to Authors of Scientific Papers

Abstract

Research activities in the world show a rapid expansion. In addition to this, the interlinkages among different countries/regions are getting stronger and denser over time. This paper gives an overview of the situation of international collaborations based on bibliometric analyses and on analyses of surveys to authors of scientific papers in Japan and the United States. Bibliometric analyses show the trend of international co-authorship in major countries, the trend of international co-authorship by field of science, quality of internationally co-authored papers, and changes of Japan's position in the international research network. We also discuss the relation between the diversity of research and international co-authorship. Next, based on the surveys to authors of scientific papers in Japan and the United States, we discuss the participation of foreign-born researchers in a research team, the relation between the internationalization and the participation of postdoctoral fellows in a research team, and the relation between the internationalization of a research team and the motivation of research.