When data sources diverge: comparing proprietary and open bibliographic data sources in measuring university-industry collaboration

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)

Abstract

The growing adoption of open bibliographic data in research evaluation raises questions about the robustness and comparability of indicators derived from different data sources. This study examines the measurement of university-industry collaboration in the Traditional Edition and the Open Edition of the Leiden Ranking, which rely on Web of Science and OpenAlex respectively. The analysis combines university-level comparisons with publication-level assessment of agreement and disagreement between the two editions. Aggregate indicators show a high degree of correspondence, but discrepancies are observed, with the Traditional Edition more frequently identifying industry involvement. A manual inspection of selected cases indicates that differences are largely driven by variations in affiliation parsing and incorrect organisation-type classification in OpenAlex. The findings highlight that while open data sources provide valuable benefits such as increased transparency and accessibility, further improvements in data quality are essential for them to serve as robust and reliable foundations for research evaluation.

Authors 2

1. Alfredo Yegros Aachen Centre for Science and Technology Studies

   Leiden University

   Affiliation as printed

   Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS), Leiden University, Netherlands

2. Nees Jan van Eck Aachen Centre for Science and Technology Studies

   Leiden University

   Affiliation as printed

   Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS), Leiden University, Netherlands