Colloquia Sociologie

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Presentation by Alejandro Espinosa-Rada (Department of Sociology at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile)

De presantie vindt plaats op maandag, 23 februari van 14:00 - 15:30.

Locatie: Snijders ruimte - M0.061 (Muntinggebouw)

Title: Multilayer Networks in Sustainability Science: Linking Global Challenges to Interdisciplinary Collaboration within a Research Center

Abstract: Understanding how interdisciplinary collaboration emerges is central to sustainability science, yet existing accounts often privilege formal research outputs over the informal social processes that underpin scientific work. This study examines the informal social networks of researchers within a national interdisciplinary sustainability science research centre that brings together scholars from the social and natural sciences to address climate-related challenges. We analyse how shared expertise, disciplinary distance, and affective social ties jointly shape patterns of interdisciplinary collaboration. The study combines survey-based relational data on informal communication and social relations with bibliometric information on scientific production, enabling a multilayer network analysis of collaboration and interaction. Our findings indicate that interdisciplinary collaboration is structured by informal communication and affective ties, alongside cognitive proximity, highlighting the enduring role of the invisible college in organising scientific activity. By empirically linking informal social relations to interdisciplinary collaboration, this study contributes to the sociology of science and sustainability research, demonstrating that scientific collaboration is embedded in everyday interaction, trust, and informal exchange rather than arising solely from shared expertise or institutional design.

Interne colloquia 2025 206

Tijdens elk colloquium zal één van de research clusters een update geven van het lopende onderzoek en plannen presenteren voor toekomstig onderzoek. Alle interne colloquia vinden in de Orangerie (G.026) van het Gadourekgebouw plaats. Na de colloquia volgen gezamenlijke lunches (BYO).

De colloquia zijn gepland op: