Who collaborates internationally in developing countries? The case of Colombia

International research collaboration is a growing social phenomenon taking place at a particularly rapid pace in developing countries. Most of the literature on the topic claims that research collaboration is an important source of creativity, which in the right set of conditions may increase scientific productivity, research quality, innovative capacity, science and technology human capital, and help the consolidation of research agendas and the expansion of research areas. However, risks and costs associated with international collaboration are also found in the literature, including the privatization and capture of traditional ‘public’ knowledge, the ‘mercantilization’ of knowledge and human capital as resulting from public-private research partnerships, high opportunity costs, and crowding out effects. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of the determinants of international research collaboration in developing countries using Colombia as a case study. In fact, knowing the factors affecting the choice of collaborating internationally will help the design of policies aimed at creating local S&T capabilities through the encouragement of the internationalization of the local S&T community, or at reducing the negative effects derived from that process. The research tests the hypotheses formulated using logit models. It considers different types of collaborative activities and different types of partners while controlling for team characteristics, team leader characteristics, scientific field, characteristics of the home institution and team location. Econometric findings and policy implications are discussed.